Help Your Child Succeed in Math: Math Tips for Parents

Compiled by Krista Pruys

1.      Make math fun. Spend time with kids on simple board games, puzzles, and activities that encourage better attitudes and stronger math skills. Even everyday activities such as playing with toys in a sandbox or in a tub at bath time can teach children math concepts like weight, density, and volume. Check your television listings for shows that can reinforce math skills in a practical and fun way.

http://www.learningfirst.org/lfa-web/rp?pa=doc&sa=download

2.      Use real world examples to teach math. Point out ways that people use math every day to pay bills, balance their checkbooks, figure out their net earnings, make change, and tip at restaurants. Involve older children in projects that incorporate geometric and algebraic concepts like planting a garden, building a bookshelf, or figuring how long it will take to drive to your family vacation destination.

 http://www.learningfirst.org/lfa-web/rp?pa=doc&sa=download

3.      Prepare your children for a profession. Let kids know what vocations require a sound base in mathematics. Careers in carpentry, landscaping, medicine, pharmacy, aeronautics, and meteorology all require strong math skills. Let them know that they too can be successful in math. Ask local employers to sponsor school-to-work programs and career fairs.

http://www.learningfirst.org/lfa-web/rp?pa=doc&sa=download

4.     Did you know that the games you play with your toddlers and preschoolers can influence their interest in learning math and science as they grow older? Young children are capable of learning such concepts as big and small, high and low, fast and slow, and heavy and light. By helping your children learn these concepts, you are helping them begin to learn about math and science.

When parents encourage their children to ask questions and help children explore and discover the natural world, they are helping build an interest in math and science. Many experts say that children who have such experiences when they are very young develop an enjoyment for and a confidence in math and science that pays off as they get older. http://www.math.com/parents/articles/pnew797h.html

5.     Reading to children is a treasured activity in many homes. What better way to integrate mathematics into the lives of children than to read them stories that bring mathematical ideas to life? Children's books related to mathematics can be separated into four categories: counting books, number books, storybooks, and concept books. Visit your local library to find a selection of math-related treasures. Scholastic book order also occasionally has math selections too.

6.      Besides the mathematics learning that takes place at the parent's initiative, there are many opportunities for parents and teachers to work cooperatively in enriching children's experience with mathematics. These situations are likely to be the most profitable for two reasons. First, children generally want to please both their parents and their teachers. If they see that mathematics is important to both their parents and their teacher, they will consider it important for themselves too. Second, extending mathematical concepts from the classroom to home will establish the idea that mathematics is not just a school subject, but an everyday subject that makes life more interesting and understandable.

Parents who want to become more involved in their child's mathematical education, but who are hesitant to take the initiative on their own, may want to look to the teacher for guidance. Teachers can provide assistance in:

1. setting up a system of home study;
2. helping parents understand the sequencing of mathematical skill development;
3. suggesting materials and activities that are entertaining and suitable for their child's level and which can be done in a reasonable amount of time;
4. providing clear guidelines on how to use materials;
5. giving feedback on the successes and failures of home activities; and
6. knowing when to stop working with a child on an activity so that a good working relationship is maintained.

http://www.math.com/parents/articles/domath.html

7.       Help your child master basic facts.

©Play family and board games to add excitement to repetitive practice.

©Purchase age-appropriate math computer games for your child.

©Encourage your child to explore numbers and patterns using a calculator.

 http://www.peelschools.org/parents/tips/documents/tip-mathprimary.pdf

8.    Be positive about math.

©Make your mathematical interactions with your child enjoyable and risk free.

©Express confidence in your child’s ability to succeed in math.

©Share positive memories from your own past.

http://www.peelschools.org/parents/tips/documents/tip-mathprimary.pdf

9.      Be supportive during homework completion.

©Encourage your child to explain her homework assignment to you.

©Encourage him to explain processes and solutions - even if he is not sure he is right.

©Encourage the use of problem solving strategies like:

1.    Guess and check

2.    Look for a pattern

3.    Draw a picture

4.    Choose an operation

5.    Make a table or graph

6.    Brainstorm for ideas

7.    Explore solutions with a calculator

http://www.peelschools.org/parents/tips/documents/tip-mathprimary.pdf

10.    Stay informed.

©Ask about math. What topic? What homework? What’s interesting?

©Read the curriculum documents for your child’s grade.

http://www.peelschools.org/parents/tips/documents/tip-mathprimary.pdf

Math Homework

Links to pamphlets put out by the Department of Education:

DOE Mental Math booklets P-9

http://lrt.ednet.ns.ca/PD/mentalmath/index.shtml

DOE ‘Let’s Talk about’ pamphlets on Math, Mental Math, Number Sense, Operation Sense, Patterns, Homework

https://sapps.ednet.ns.ca/Cart/items.php?CA=1&UID=20090902095839142.227.51.61