Want to Improve Your Child's Math Skills? Make Math a Way of Life!

Interesting news about how to get kids more fluent in mathematics.. (fluent works because math is said to be a language). According to the The Scotsman, it is possible to foster math ability with children.

And we here at Sweet Schoolin' say that homeschooling fits this mission beautifully. Schools are doing a lousy job at this... don't compartmentalize math. Talk about math with your kids. Did you know the nautilus image at left is a perfect start for discussing the Golden Spiral. Try it! (with search engines, you have no excuse, learn along with the kids!)

Some things to try:

• teach your children to see themselves as problem solvers. Use math language and make it part of your life


• make sure your children are doing math puzzles, Sudoku, mazes, logic puzzles. You can start mazes early on


• discuss math with your children, how to solve puzzles, word problems.


• encourage a flexible view of numbers... break up the numbers to make operations easier. 2 x 98 is the same as 2 x 100, -4, which is easier for many people.


• point out the logic in even wrong answers when your child is working on a math problem, rather than just saying, "No, that's wrong."


• take a "real life" approach to math. USE it. Talk about it, find the beauty in it.



Read the whole article here.

Living Math
Incredibots
Mathematical Magic
The Golden Mean

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How To Help Your Child Want To Read

Image via Wikipedia

I am a firm believer in not pushing children to do things before they are ready to do so. And I try to balance that with the worry I sometimes feel when my children aren't progressing as quickly as I would like. So I don't shove reading down my childrens' throats. I don't force them to read; that's the fastest way to make a kid hate reading.

With my oldest daughter, she taught herself to read, at three and a half. She has never stopped. My son took longer, he started reading well at around eight. It isn't his favorite pastime, but he reads well enough. My youngest daughter goes back and forth. She will sit and watch Word World, with her red spiral notebook and pause the tv to write the words down. She is teaching herself. We also do Click and Read with her, and Rocket Phonics. I let her go at her own pace, but I always offer to work with her every day.

Most importantly, we do a lot of reading books aloud. I love to read aloud, and the kids love to listen. Also, when I can't do it, older sister jumps in and does it. She read the kids all of the Peter and the Starcatchers series, and also the City of Ember. She is dedicated, and they love it.

Some of the things I do to foster reading:

• I let the kids read whenever they want.
• We read aloud
• regular trips to the library; ours knows us on a first name basis
• my son reads video games, it improved his reading ten-fold
• find a subject the kids want to know about, then "strew" books around. They will find them. And read them.
• let the kids see you reading
• make books a priority in your home.
  

  "When I get a little money, I buy books. And if there is any left over, I buy food.”
  Desiderius Erasmus

We here at Sweet Schoolin' believe that fostering a love of reading is one of the most important things you can do for a child. Strong reading skills will be with them forever. And if they have a book, they are never alone.

Click and Read
Rocket Phonics
Starfall (a website for beginning readers)
Study Dog
Bob books

Suggestion to Increase Reading Comprehension

One of the neatest things about homeschooling is accompanying my children on their journey of self-discovery. Today, JBug found a solution and I am proud of her. She loves to read. In fact, more often than not, you will find her with a book in her hand. But she reads very fast, and sometimes will miss details. She will end up rereading to catch what she missed the first time. Up until now, this has been a problem. But she discovered finger knitting. And now, she can read and finger knit at the same time. This slows her reading substantially, and her comprehension has really increased.

I love that she figured this out all on her own. Hope it helps someone else. I certainly wouldn't have thought of it! (And added bonus...it is good motor practice and easy enough for my 7 year old to do, with a bit of practice.)

T, who used to read really fast, but slowed down over the years, because reading is relaxing