Division is all about sharing!

by Achal Kamble

As a new teacher, I’ve learned that managing a class, checking notebooks, and teaching a full math concept all within 40 minutes,  feels like performing magic without a wand!

Recently, while teaching division, I realized how scary that word sounds to primary students. So, I brought chocolates to make it sweeter. “Let’s divide these among five people equally,” I said. Suddenly, the classroom turned into a lively math fair! Students were so serious about sharing that they made sure every piece was the same size and color  fairness at its best.

But once the chocolates disappeared and books opened, the excitement vanished too. Division on paper? Not so sweet anymore! That’s when I understood how tough it is to move from hands-on learning to abstract concepts.

Then these little Einsteins started asking their curious questions! While using materials, they suddenly asked, “Ma’am, why can’t we write the remainder as the answer? Why only the quotient?” I tried explaining with the materials, but the questions just kept coming nonstop! Later, when we moved to the standard algorithm, they began mixing up multiplication with division. It took almost the entire period just to help them understand that the two operations are different but that’s the beauty and chaos of teaching,

Still, those small “Ma’am, I got it!” moments make it all worthwhile. The teaching division isn’t just about numbers it’s about sharing, reasoning, and maybe keeping a few chocolates handy for emergencies!