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Teaching
Mathematics
Don't forget to have
your child's eyes tested. Research indicates that children with vision
problems (such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, or dyslexia) that go
undetected and/or uncorrected can have learning and/or behavior problems.
Signs of vision problems can include some or all of the following: squinting,
closing or covering one eye, sitting close to the TV, holding books very
close, headaches, nausea, dizziness, clumsiness, tilting head, daydreaming,
rubbing eyes, distractibility, reluctance to look at letters or numbers,
inability to notice things, losing place in book, using finger to mark place
in book, difficulty in learning to read.
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Math is fun! Sure it is! Children
do math every time they share a cookie with a friend, divide responsibilities
for a group project, stack blocks, or fit a round peg into a square hole. All of
these activities -- sorting, dividing, adding -- are mathematical in nature.
So many children get off to a bad start with
math. They hear parents or older siblings moan about the subject,
they hear that some people are "just no good at math," or they hear that boys
are better than girls at math, and they learn to fear it. Actually, math can be
just as fun as any other topic if it is presented in a fun, easy way.
Regardless of how they see it, mastering math will be critical to doing well in
school, and perhaps even essential to their chosen field of study.
You can help your child get a head start on
math. You don't have to wait until the child is 7 years old. A
toddler can learn to count, and a 5 or 6-year-old can learn to add and subtract
small numbers. We aren't suggesting you force the subject or conduct drills.
Just working very brief, very casual lessons into everyday activities can help
get the ball rolling.
Start simple, reinforce often, and build
slowly. If the child seems confused or frustrated, go back to simple
lessons, praise for a job well done, and then stop for the day if you need to.
You can always come back to it later. Avoid criticizing your child in personal
ways, overcorrecting, or looking upset or disappointed. Do praise. Do explain
that everyone -- boys and girls, your child and you, too -- can learn math. Do
understand that there might be more than one way to get to a right answer. Do
let the child take the time necessary to figure things out. Do reinforce the
fact that your child can do it. Remember: It's important to keep it fun! Below,
we have some suggestions. If you have more suggestions,
please tell us.
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Count the number of times the
child swings on a swing set (for young children, only go to 10 or 20, and then
start over). |
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Count backward the number of
minutes or seconds until a favorite activity ends. (This is helpful with getting
a child to stop an activity without a lot of fuss, too.) |
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Get the child used to math
language. Cut a sandwich "in half," "divide" it into quarters, "add" something
to the pile, or "subtract" something from a collection. Use everyday situations
to talk about size, distance, weight, height, time, age, and amounts. Don't be
afraid to use language your child doesn't understand. You can explain in simple
terms. For example, you can ask, "Do you know what "distance" means? It means
how far it is from here to there." Your child won't remember everything, but
getting familiar with the terms will help reinforce them later, and you'll be
surprised at what the child will learn. |
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Use cooking or baking time as
a gentle, easy way to teach fractions (don't teach too much, or get too
complicated initially. Just learning that two halves equal a whole is a huge
step). Your child can set the timer, set the oven temperature, add how many
sandwiches or glasses are necessary, or give everyone one napkin, two forks, one
knife and one spoon.. |
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Be tactile with your lessons.
Show the child that one block "plus" one block "equals" two blocks, or that two
blocks "minus" one block "equals" one block. |
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Be anthropomorphic with your
lessons. A child can sometimes absorb a lesson more easily if the block that
gets added or subtracted has a name, a personality, and a story to go with it. |
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Don't be too quick with an
answer. Children learn in many different ways, but one of the best ways they
learn is with their hands. If a child asks you how much a dozen is, don't just
tell her "12." Instead, get out a ruler or an egg carton, and actually count the
dozen together. Helping your child actually "solve" the problem will help him or
her become a problem solver, and when your child is older, he or she will feel
more confident with tackling more complex questions. |
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Ask the child to put blocks,
socks or other objects in repeating patterns, in equal piles, to add one to each
pile, or to subtract one from each pile. Ask the child to count blocks as they
get stacked, or the books or stuffed toys as they are put away. As the child to
help sort similar objects in piles together. |
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Ask the child to help make a
snack by putting three or four each of some age-appropriate snack foods in a
bowl, or by "dividing" snacks into "equal" portions so that everyone "has the
same amount." |
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When reading stories, ask a
few questions that involve math. "How many pigs were in the story?" "How long do
you suppose was Rapunzel's hair?" |
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Sing songs that involve
counting, such as "One, Two, Buckle My Shoe," "One Little, Two Little, Three
Little Snowmen" and "This Old Man." |
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Play games that entail using
numbers, patterns, problem-solving or simple math, such as "Monopoly Jr.,"
"Chutes and Ladders," "Dominoes," "War," checkers, tic-tac-toe, or "Trouble."
Young children can sort things into sets. Older children can play "Monopoly," chess, twenty-one, rummy,
"Battleship" and "Yahtzee."
Play "I Spy" with patterns, colors, shapes, or numbers around the house. Play
"I'm thinking of a number (after 5, between 4 and 6, before 2, etc.)."
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When your child is 4 or 5,
start teaching about money. Give your child a small bank, and introduce coins
and dollars. When you go out to shop, point out prices, dollar signs, and cent
signs. Identify how numbers are written. Explain about being able to spend only
the amount of money you have. Ask your child to find the proper amount of bills
or change (set limits depending on your child's age). Explain that credit cards
are a promise to pay later. Allow your child to spend a small amount of money on
something, and explain the transaction of trading money for goods. Teach your
child how to count change. We encouraged learning by having our daughter count
the change in our pockets -- she could keep it if she counted it properly. As your child
gets older, make sure you help your child avoid money problems as an adult by
teaching everything you can about how money works, about finance, about
budgeting. See our page on Finance for more. |
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When grocery shopping, put
things on a scale and find out how much they weigh. Determine which things might
weigh more or less than other things. |
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Start teaching the concept of
time. Talk about how long something takes to cook, or how long a trip might be.
Talk about days, weeks, months and years, hours and minutes. Explain times in
concrete terms (such as "this trip will take about 15 minutes; that's as long as
it takes us to walk to the park"). Use a child-friendly clock that has a face
(not digital) and hands that can turn. |
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Use your imagination, but
take care to keep the games fun and no-pressure. As with other subjects,
lessons in math can be more effective if they're short and casual. Don't insist
on teaching if the child becomes tired, confused, or overwhelmed. Most of all,
don't criticize your child, laugh at your child, tell your child s/he can't do
it, or reinforce any idea that math is hard. Keep it simple, keep it fun, and
keep it going! |
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