Strategies to solve a sum(2)

Use before and after concept

Compare the situation before and after the problem is solved. Sometimes the differences(or a specific difference can shed light on the cause and lead to a possible solution.

Use guess and check

Make an educated guess of the answer and check to see if it is correct. Use the knowledge gained from testing an incorrect guess to improve the next guess. It is important to avoid making wild guesses. Track the guesses made and look for patterns to improve the next guess.

Make suppositions

Study the data given and make suppositions(assumptions without proof) about some aspects of the problem to form the basis for further thinking. This reduces the number of possibilities and makes it easier to explore the problem further.

Restate the problem in another way

Read the problem carefully and restate it in the child's own words. This helps the child understand the problem and identify important factors of the problem.

Simplify the problem 

Make a difficult problem simpler. This can be done by changing complex numbers to simple numbers or by reducing the number of things in the problem. The solution he the simplified problem may help the child solve the original problem.

Solve part of the problem

Split a complex problem into smaller parts and solve the simpler part first