Fun Ways to Introduce Math to Your Child
Mar 02, 2019
You are sitting at the kitchen table, helping your child with homework, and struggling to help him memorize math facts and formulas. Learning feels like a chore instead of a joy. Is this a familiar scene?
While 80 percent of traditional mathematics teaching relies on drilling and memorization, it can also be boring, frustrating and discouraging for children. Parents can help to make math fun and approachable by linking it to real-world examples.
Memorization of math facts and formulas is an important part of math instruction. In order for children to really understand even basic math facts, they must discover them in the world around them.
Encourage your children to learn the value of math by using fun games and activities to help them apply what they’ve learned. The following are some examples recommended by Sylvan Learning, the leading provider of tutoring to students of all ages, grades and skill levels:
• Play popular board games that require basic math skills. Chutes and Ladders® and RackO® develop number sense. “24” and Yahtzee® help computation speed and accuracy. Problem solving skills are developed through games like TriOminos® and Connect Four®.
• A deck of cards can be a valuable math tool. Card games begin to teach the lesson of probability. Using a deck of cards is also a great way to reinforce addition and subtraction memorization for children learning basic math facts.
• Relate math to your child’s favourite sport. Ask her to calculate the number of points needed for her favorite team to win. Encourage her to create multiple point combinations to reach that score.
• Use driving time as math game time. Invite children to figure out how long it will take to get to your destination or estimate how much it will cost to fill up the gas tank.
• Dominoes are a great game for children of all ages. Smaller children can use them to organize similar quantities, while older children can explore the concepts of probability.
Sylvan Learning offers Seven Days of Activities for Family Learning Fun, which provides other suggestions for enjoyable educational programs and activities for parents and children. Download your copy by visiting the “Parent Resources” area of www.SylvanLearning.com.