Is There a Math Alarm? Here’s How Not to Pass It on to Your Child
“Does anyone here know geometry well? I suck and my baby needs help. Help!”
“General math – for that I need more wine.”
“Looking at these rational numbers makes me very irrational!”
All over Facebook, I see parents torment – and empathize – with their kids’ homework, especially math homework. I am not there yet, since my daughter is only 4 years old, but I was afraid of this stage – I already shouted “Not that!” my husband to decide who will help her with all her maths. (Instead, I’ll demand English and, um, maybe pottery.)
But maybe it’s time to change my attitude. It turns out that parental fear of math can be passed on to our children even if we don’t realize it. Many adults have had a moment (or several) in their lives when they declared themselves “not a mathematician”, and this is understandable. Educational experts say that traditional math teaching of students – through scheduled tests, long lists of rules to remember, and even the assumption that 100 percent is perfect – is not only stressful but ineffective. Some studies show that 10 to 20 percent of adults have high math anxiety.
However, math is certainly important – it is the key to careers in science, medicine, technology, and engineering. The good news is that, according to Joe Bowler, professor of math education at Stanford University and CEO of the math education resource you’ve created , any child can achieve the highest level of math in school if given the opportunity.
Here’s how to support your math student when you’re worried about math.
Don’t sympathize (out loud) if your child says he or she is poor at math
“Never tell your child, ‘I wasn’t good at math either,” Buhler tells me. “Instead, say,” The new brain science tells us that everyone’s brain can grow and change, and you can develop new mathematical methods to learn anything. “
Moms have a special challenge. The researchers found that as soon as mothers told their daughters that they did not like math or that they were poor at it, their daughters’ academic performance declined.
Don’t tell your kids they are wrong as they are problem solvers.
Instead, Buhler says, find logic in their thinking. “For example, if your child multiplies 3 by 4 and gets 7, say,“ Oh, I know what you’re thinking, you use what you know about addition to add 3 and 4, when we multiply we get 4 groups of 3 … “” – she writes on her website .
Play math games and puzzles
Bowler says math games, puzzles, and apps help kids “develop a sense of number, which is very important.” Here’s a great list to get you started.
Create a math-friendly environment at home
Harris Cooper, professor of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University, told the New York Times that math-minded parents can help their children at home by modeling “mathematical behavior”:
Game plan: Tell your child, “You have your math homework and I have mine,” he said, and show them when you “count your change, figure out when dinner is ready, look at the grocery store prices. … “
Help a stuck child with engaging questions
If you don’t know how to solve a math problem, questions can help you both understand its meaning.
The Mathematics Education Collaboration provides a few questions to start with .
What if your child comes home with a math problem and says, “I don’t understand!”
Your task is to think about questions that will help him or her solve the problem:
- What is the problem? Tell in your own words.
- What did you do in class to get started?
- Can you draw a diagram or sketch?
- What assumptions are you making?
- How do you know you are solving the right problem?
- Maybe there is some missing or superfluous information?
- Can you solve a simpler version of the problem?