| Research says children are more likely to be successful learners when parents actively support their learning. Today, helping children to make the effort to learn mathematics is more important than ever. Our world of technology demands strong skills in mathematics, and these demands will only increase over the lifetimes of our children.
Parents must become involved early and stay involved over the school years to build children’s skills in math and develop positive attitudes toward mathematics. Math education especially in middle and high school, can play a major role in determining his or her future education and career opportunities.
Some Important Things Your Child Needs to Know About Mathematics
You can help your child learn math by offering help on how to approach math. Your child will be more confident their ability if he or she understands the following points:
Problems Can Be Solved in Different Ways.
Most math problems have only one answer, however, there may be several ways of solving the problem.
Wrong Answers Sometimes Can Be Useful.
Analyzing wrong answers can help your child to understand math concepts and to learn to apply reasoning skills to calculate the correct answer.
Help Your Child to be a Risk Taker.
Help him see the value of trying to solve a problem, even if it’s difficult. Give your child time to explore different approaches to solving a difficult problem. As he works, encourage him to talk about what he is thinking. This will help him to strengthen math skills and to become an independent thinker and problem solver.
Being Able to Do Mathematics in Your Head Is Important.
Mathematics isn’t just for pencil and paper activities. Doing math mental math is a valuable skill that can be used every day in stores, restaurants or gas stations.
It’s Sometimes OK to Use a Calculator to Solve Mathematics Problems.
Let your child know to use calculators correctly, knowledge of basic math skill is required and it helps to know if the answer displayed on the calculator is reasonable!
Get involved!
Be sure to attend school events and conferences to ask questions and learn more about your child’s math program and how he or she is doing.
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