Question
: Are there any everyday ways to help my children become better math
students?
Answer:
Believe it or not, the best way to help your children become better
mathematicians is by having them do more math. For example, if their
teachers assign only the odd problems in a textbook for homework, they
should also do the even ones. And if a math assignment is a brief one, they
or you can go online and look for similar work for them to do. You’ll find
an abundance of worksheets on both grade level and specific skills.
Also, there are many books you can purchase that will give your children
additional practice in the skills they are working on in school. Just 15
minutes of extra math work several times a week will soon pay dividends.
And your children will begin to feel greater confidence in their ability to
do math.
Now, if your children’s skills in math are a bit subpar, you need to do
some detective work to discover what are those specific areas. Their
teachers should be able to identify these areas for you through looking at
classroom and standardized tests, as well as recent schoolwork. Children
are not going to become skilled mathematicians unless they have mastered
earlier skills that they should have learned.
A steady diet of doing extra math is not likely to encourage students to
really enjoy mathematics – so intersperse fun activities in your quest to
improve their math skills. On our Dear Teacher website
(dearteacher.com),
you will find lots of interesting things for them to do in Learning
Activities: Math. In addition, children can learn how to do lightning-quick
calculations and amazing number tricks in the book, “Secrets of Mental
Math” by Arthur Benjamin and Michael Shermer.
