An understanding of what math fact fluency is, why it is important, and how mastery of this skill can be obtained and/or increased is crucial for teachers in order to be in compliance with Common Core or similar standards. Fact fluency or a mastery of the basic math facts is the ability to accurately and automatically (within three seconds) know the answers to math fact problems with addends less than 10 for both addition and subtraction problems. Knowing these facts is important because they are the building blocks of more complex mathematical problems and concepts. Without a mastery of the basic facts, students cannot succeed in higher-order mathematics and will therefore not meet proficiency.

 

Teachers can help students obtain or increase their mastery of basic facts by first understanding the developmental phases. Students move from counting, to reasoning, to mastery. Students must first understand the idea of what it means to add and subtract and have substantial exposure and practice with this skill. After they are able to count, they start to connect reasoning to solve problems using what they already know about the patterns and relationships between numbers. Once there is a solid foundation in reasoning, students can start moving into the mastery stage with effective drill. Effective drill means that students have repeated and meaningful exposure to the basic math facts. This does not always need to be flashcards - games can be just as effective if it gives students exposure and practice using their reasoning. 

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