Get Back to Basics to Teach Basic Skills

To teach or reinforce basics, get back to basics! In this day of ever increasing technology, it is still beneficial to give it all up for at least a few minutes and get back to basics.

I'm sure you have observed that in schools these days, as in other parts of the world, technology is king. Our kids are constantly bombarded with ever more technology to complete simple tasks that we somehow accomplished without technology. There are computer and hand held video games and systems and even television programs dedicated to teaching and reinforcing math, english, social studies and science facts. Not that I am against any of these, I'm NOT! But there is a time for everything. And if the use of these advanced technologies has not helped your child learn or improve basic skills, then it should not be more of the same.

If technology has yet to yield the results you crave, do something different! Consider going back to the basics. Turn off the television, computer, and video games. Sit your child down in a quiet area with (dare I say it?) paper and pencil, and maybe a textbook (what is that?) and have him say and write the particular basic fact that you want him to learn. Have him do this 10 times, alternating sitting and standing while speaking (and writing, if he is able). After 10 times on a particular fact, say the Pythagorean Theorem, then and only then should he do the same with another fact. Limit his practice of this type to 4 different facts per day.

Tell him that you (or your designee) will quiz him either orally or in writing on his knowledge when he is finished. Quiz him and reward him for his successes with verbal praise. If he doesn't do so well, praise him for the effort, and work on the same facts the next day. Even if he does well and you move on to another set of 4 facts the next day, quiz him on the previous days' facts. You and your child can come up with a reward, if you so choose, after he receives a satisfactory "grade" on a quiz after at least 6 days of such quizzing. Since he is working daily and receiving daily feedback, his confidence is improving even if he is still not performing as well as you would like. As his confidence continues to improve, so will his performance, and with more work, he will work to achieve his potential.

For a 38 page book of strategies, visit http://HelpYourChildAchieveInMath.com.

Don't Give Up Your Kids To The System, The School System That Is!

As my two kids were having a private conversation I heard, "Give up your kids?" in an incredulous tone from my 6 year old daughter. That started me to thinking of how many people unknowingly give up their kids to an educational system that may or may not work for them.

As a parent, it is your responsibility to make sure that your children get everything they need. Not just the bare necessities of food, shelter, and clothing but the more meaningful attributes that they will take with them for the remainder of their lives. These include love, first and foremost, security, and yes, education.

So why do so many parents enroll their children in school and expect the system to do the rest? Have we not learned that the system fails at least as many as it helps? The scary truth is that in order for your children to be successful in obtaining a good education, YOU will have to delve deep and determine what a good education is and help them get it.

How? Many people have read or been told that children do better when parents are a part of their school lives. I concur. However, that doesn't mean that you must spend hours completing his math project so that he will get a good grade. While assisting with homework will help your child do better in school, there is another way that studies prove increases his achievement. Simply be a presence in his school. Go to the parent-teacher conferences, PTO nights, plays, and games. But more than that, help out around the school in various ways. Maybe you can donate some items for art, beautify the school grounds, assist a teacher by running some copies, answer the office phone, etc. The list is endless. Ask school personnel what you can do to help if you are unsure where to start.

What if you work?

You don't have to be in the school everyday or even every week for that matter. You can take a couple to four hours per semester to volunteer at your child's school during the day. Altogether, that's ONE day you will miss work for an entire year, and it's for a far better cause than watching a ball game! Imagine if 100 parents per school committed to spend 4 hours per semester in their children's schools. That's 400 hours, or 57 days per semester (based on a 7 hour school day) of extra, free workers in our schools, and 100 extra bodies making sure that our kids are safe!

For more strategies to help your child achieve in math, go to http://HelpYourChildAchieveInMath.com for a 38 page book.

Learn While Exercising

A few days till Christmas. While it's easy to veg out in front of the TV and eat big, hearty meals, it's equally satisfying to get in a little bit of exercise.

If you don't see where you'll be able to get in a full fledged workout, that's OK. Do some situps during the commercials or some squats during a not-so-exciting part of the movie. As you exercise, ask your child to exercise with you. Then encourage her to share with you something that she's learned (or would like to learn) in math as she is exercising.

Some people learn best while being active, and even these relatively small tidbits of time can improve your child's math ability. Try to practice/exercise for 1-3 minutes at a time and work up to 10 minutes. As you and your child move some muscles, a bigger muscle will also be at work--the brain!

For a 38 page book of strategies to help your child improve in math, visit http://HelpYourChildAchieveInMath.com.

Put Practice Into Play

The holiday break is upon us, and with it comes finding activities for the kids to do...besides watching TV. Consider setting aside a few minutes during each day for your child to practice basic (or advanced, depending on your child's level) math facts. Have him create a game like Jeopardy and play it against you, friends, and/or siblings. Of course, he probably knows the answers to all the questions since he made the game, but that doesn't make it any less fun!

Also, ask if the other people he'll be playing against wouldn't mind creating a game of their own. This will mean that your child has more practice and more fun.

Have your child write out important facts and time himself against himself. See how fast he can copy the facts the first time and record the information. Then have him do it a second time. Record that information. And so on. He should have a goal that he's working towards: i.e. "I'll copy these 20 facts down in 2 minutes." In this type of game, he competes with himself and it is just as fulfilling reaching your goal as it is winning a game when playing with someone else.

For a 38 page book filled with strategies, visit http://HelpYourChildAchieveInMath.com.

How Parents Can Help Their Children In Math Over the Holidays

Many of us are eagerly looking forward to the holidays. But the holidays are also an excellent time for parents to help their children excel in math.

Ways to Help Your Child in Math Over the Holidays

1. Instead of hiding the math folders on the bookshelf until the start of school, insist that your child study for a few minutes each day. Studying for as few as 10 minutes per day helps your child not only remember what he's already learned, but also learn new things he may have missed when they were originally brought up in class. Things to have him concentrate on are notes and textbooks from class, fundamental skills such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division facts, memorizing rules and theorems, and solving word problems.

2. Make grocery shopping a lesson. Tell your child your budget and have her estimate if you will be under or over budget after getting the items on your list. For older kids, have them estimate the tax as well and encourage them to help you come under budget. Do you need to wait to purchase a certain item, or go to a different store to make it happen?

3. Let your child help you with some of the cooking, especially the measuring. Although sometimes it is more difficult to cook when kids are in the kitchen, it is a chance for them to spend time with you and learn, sometimes without realizing it, about math. Resolve to have your child help you with at least one dish for the holiday meal. Aside from measuring, children can also be instrumental in determining how long a meal will take or how many minutes or hours until your guests will arrive.

4. Play games with your child. Of course Monopoly is a math based board game, but you don't have to play specific games to help your child achieve in math. Most board games help with analytical thinking so play, play play!

These are just a few ways to help your child in math over the holidays. Use them and continue to help your child become the best that he can be! For additional ways to help your child in math, I've written a simple book of strategies, much like the ones above. It can be accessed at http://HelpYourChildAchieveInMath.com.

Help With Math

Right now the US is no longer at the top in education. I'm sure that concerns many people, as it should. However, as any child who struggles will likely show you, focusing on the problem will not help. We should be focusing on the solution.

So how can we, as citizens, help our children and our country with education? Expect the best from our children. In the area of math, there are many ways that we can help our children achieve in math. One thing that we can do is to read our children books or articles about math and how it relates to a particular job in society. Let's show our children that math counts outside of the classroom. This will pique their interest in math, and we all know that children participate in what interests them.

To help your child achieve in math, try this out for 4 weeks: Read 2 to 4 books or articles per week to your child math. Choose books or articles that show how people use math in their careers or books or articles about how math can be fun or easy.