Common Core

I've been seeing numerous posts about Common Core recently, mostly negative, showing math problems that students are required to solve using methods other than the standard algorithms. After reading up on what Common Core actually is and at the risk of inciting a riot, I have to say that I don't think these math frustrations have much to do with it. For the last seven years, I've been homeschooling my kids using a curriculum that met state education standards for all 50 states. This year, we switched to public school and the schools my kids are attending are already using Common Core math textbooks. The math they are learning and the methods they are being taught this year are pretty much exactly the same as what they were learning here at home in many respects. Now, I know that many people reading this put their fingers in their ears and started "La la la-ing" as soon as you heard the word homeschool. But please here me out...there is more than one way to conceptualize and solve any of the four standard math operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.) Learning multiple methods makes a lot of sense, considering we all learn differently. If I had known, as a child, that I could conceptualize long division a couple of different ways, I think I would have embraced math and not felt so tortured by it. The standard algorithms work for most people, that's why they're standard. But gaining a deeper understanding of why 56 divided by 8 is 7 may require more than memorizing that particular math fact. I advocate memorizing math facts, but I also advocate understanding the process and if there is any connection to Common Core, it's that particular nugget..