![]() ![]() I have a tendency to want to stay ahead of the curve with my son: throw more advanced, 1-3 grade concepts at him, and see if any of it sticks. Math is everywhere, and the more opportunities you take, the more ability your child will have to apply math concepts to their world (AKA demonstrate mastery). Video games, board games, and anything else that encourages counting.Really Khan Academy across the board is a no-brainer because of how good the lessons are designed for free platform. They aren't too long, and are certainly hit-and-miss, but for example abacus math is very powerful, and a very easy way for children to physically manipulate objects while counting and understanding numeric values (really important at this age). Khan Academy's lowest level math videos.The middle-school jump from numbers to variables is one of the largest areas where grade school kids struggle with math - to get that taken care of at this age is a huge bonus. Done correctly, the child is effortlessly introduced to fractions and algebraic equations, the latter being IMO worth it's weight in gold down the road. Being able to sing along with a video is just one more way to get them in front of numbers without burning them out on the ideas, and that's a really good thing. Some of their math needs to be read out of books, sometimes drawn, sometimes held in their hands. The classic Schoolhouse Rock series, and LeapFrog movies (the latter being available on Netflix).It's more practice of the basics, and they won't tire of it as easily. Kids love new things, and books are no exception. Cheap, easy to find at Walmart, Target, and dollar stores. A used copy at that link will be less than $5 shipped - a steal even if only a couple of games in the book are worthwhile to you. I cannot recommend these books enough, they teach several years worth of math/algebra/geometry/statistics fundamentals in ways that even little kids can have fun with. Family Math, of which there are several books that are nothing but math games to play.Don't ever just teach a concept to ten in a base ten system they will understand it better if they get to see how it's constructed beyond that. Studies have shown that kids struggle the most with the teen numbers, and they struggle with wrapping ideas from tens to hundreds to thousands. When you work with small numbers, don't stop counting at ten - stop at 20 or better yet 25. If you don't like CC, I would at least suggest adopting a policy of never letting decimal system (ten digit, 0-9) learning stop at ten or one hundred. Random Common Core Standard exercises I build myself.I do the following, pretty loosely structured so that my son doesn't feel like he's grinding education: ![]() I don't put much stock in curriculum, because at the K level they are designed for 10-minute lessons and that's it. ![]() To be always counting, adding, subtracting, and thinking about them - they don't need the mechanical memorization of techniques nearly as much as they need a mental understanding of what numbers are and what they represent. I have a math degree, and IMO what children need most at this age is constant work with numbers. I have it now for my 5-year-old, but I still supplement a lot of it. Making Math Meaningful is what I used as a child. IMO there are better programs for kindergarten and elementary school levels. Saxon math works great in middle and high school. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |