Resources to teach math

[Anonymous]

Hi. After reading lots of threads about teaching reading at an early age, what about math and science? Does DCUM have recs for teaching pre-math and math skills at home? Thinking of elementary age but really any age as well. TIA!

[Anonymous]

We did Bedtime math. Like a bedtime story but a math problem. For teaching we chose a Canadian program matched to US Common Core standards called Jump Math. https://jumpmath.org/jump/us/. The teaching here in US is suboptimal - although teachers are obsessed with math success. Go figure! There is no longer a lot of direct instruction so you really have to take it on yourself unfortunately. (At least MCPS)

[Anonymous]

There are a lot of online (or phone) games that will teach math skills if you are ok with using screen time for that (there was great dungeon-based game my kid played in 3d frade but I don’t remember the name, but pike around coolmathgames and other sites). Khan academy is also great for learning specific topics.

[Anonymous]

Dr. Wright's Kitchen Table Math has a lot of great ideas. We just casually do it throughout the day.

For example, I taught my kids patterning with "snack math." I would hand them trail mix type ingredients (Cheerios, craisins, nuts) and we'd play making patterns out of them before the kids ate them. It was fun; it was math.

For my kids who asked to do workbooks (which was 2 out of 3 of them), we liked the Kumon books and Lollipop Logic.

[Anonymous]

Play games. They almost always have a math component (keeping score, making moves, etc.) and encourage logical thinking. Some, like Sleeping Queens and Monopoly, incorporate math more directly. My kids enjoyed playing Bingo with Froot Loops as tokens even when they were older (you could pick any treat for tokens).

Teach them about money and consider giving an allowance. I think learning about money is one of the best things to teach kids about math. It teaches addition, subtraction, place value, regrouping, and introduces multiplication.

Teach them how to tell time on an analog watch (they make some designed for learning).

https://www.amazon.com/kids-teaching-watch/s?k=kids+teaching+watch

Cooking is excellent for fractions. For added challenge, you could have them double or halve recipes.

Crafts can be great for math.

Give them a tape measure and/or a timer.

Sudoku

Magic Squares

Hoagies has enrichment links for all subjects. Here's the page for math links:

https://www.hoagiesgifted.org/math.htm

The National Library of Virtual Manipulatives lets kids play with and explore math concepts online.

http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/vlibrary.html

Sir Cumference books by Cindy Neuschwander provide an introduction to geometry topics.

Secret codes might be interesting. The Seymour Sleuth mysteries are great picture books by Doug Cushman. The Third Grade Detectives mystery series by George E. Stanley are chapter books that explore secret codes deeper.

Cyberchase is a great PBS show focusing on math.

Zoombinis is a great computer game focusing on logic.

A verbal game called buzz is great for practicing most math concepts. You pick a pattern and then start counting, substituting the word buzz for words that fit the pattern. To make it more interesting you can combine rules.

Ex. Numbers with 2s:
1, buzz, 3, 4, . . . , 11, buzz, 13, . . . , 19, buzz, buzz, buzz, . . . , 30, 31, buzz, 33, etc.

You can combine rules. Ex. Odd numbers and numbers with 2s:
Buzz, buzz, buzz, 4, . . . , 10, buzz, buzz, buzz, 14, . . . , 18, buzz, buzz, buzz, . . . , 30, buzz, buzz, buzz, 34, buzz, 36, etc.

As your child gets older you can use other patterns for buzz: multiples, perfect squares, primes, Fibonacci numbers, etc.

[Anonymous]

Teach your child the feel for numbers; how big they are compared to each other and how far they are from each other.
If you have 1000-998= the child should recognize fairly fast that the answer is quite small since the numbers are almost next to each other vs 1000-3 for example.
Start by asking him/her to line the numbers up from 1-20.
Now take some of the numbers out and ask then to line them up from smaller to bigger.
There are so many games to play and later you simply move on to bigger numbers.
I do not do much with balls or cheerios; they do that at school. I really like to stick with actual number and it worked my DC. If it hadn't, I would have tried something else.
I did not want to say that 3 balls is like #3. U really think it is given and time to move to numbers.

[Anonymous]

Pre-math: lots of counting. Sorting coins.

Small candies - nerds, smarties, m&ms - are excellent because they offer immediate rewards for getting math problems right. "Now you can eat two of them. How many are left?"

Elementary Math: If you are lucky, your child's math textbook will be awful. If you are unlucky, you will live in Fairfax County and it will be nonexistent. In either case, I think it's easiest to get a decent textbook series and run a full curriculum at home, instead of trying to do just-in-time remediation. (If you're more of a slacker, get a few of Kumon's workbooks and have the kid do a few pages a day of their problem sets.)

Anyway, for a full curriculum, I like Singapore Math US Ed., which is backed by a good "Home Instructors Guide", but there are quite a few decent alternatives.

Kate Snow reviews a bunch of candidates here: http://kateshomeschoolmath.com/curriculum/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Play games. They almost always have a math component (keeping score, making moves, etc.) and encourage logical thinking. Some, like Sleeping Queens and Monopoly, incorporate math more directly. My kids enjoyed playing Bingo with Froot Loops as tokens even when they were older (you could pick any treat for tokens).

War is great for the very young. Just the name alone will attract a small boy's attention. A nice introduction to greater than/less than/equal.

Cribbage is excellent for the somewhat older elementary school child. Lots of addition, and even a bit of permutation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Play games. They almost always have a math component (keeping score, making moves, etc.) and encourage logical thinking. Some, like Sleeping Queens and Monopoly, incorporate math more directly. My kids enjoyed playing Bingo with Froot Loops as tokens even when they were older (you could pick any treat for tokens).

Teach them about money and consider giving an allowance. I think learning about money is one of the best things to teach kids about math. It teaches addition, subtraction, place value, regrouping, and introduces multiplication.

Teach them how to tell time on an analog watch (they make some designed for learning).

https://www.amazon.com/kids-teaching-watch/s?k=kids+teaching+watch

Cooking is excellent for fractions. For added challenge, you could have them double or halve recipes.

Crafts can be great for math.

Give them a tape measure and/or a timer.

Sudoku

Magic Squares

Hoagies has enrichment links for all subjects. Here's the page for math links:

https://www.hoagiesgifted.org/math.htm

The National Library of Virtual Manipulatives lets kids play with and explore math concepts online.

http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/vlibrary.html

Sir Cumference books by Cindy Neuschwander provide an introduction to geometry topics.

Secret codes might be interesting. The Seymour Sleuth mysteries are great picture books by Doug Cushman. The Third Grade Detectives mystery series by George E. Stanley are chapter books that explore secret codes deeper.

Cyberchase is a great PBS show focusing on math.

Zoombinis is a great computer game focusing on logic.

A verbal game called buzz is great for practicing most math concepts. You pick a pattern and then start counting, substituting the word buzz for words that fit the pattern. To make it more interesting you can combine rules.

Ex. Numbers with 2s:
1, buzz, 3, 4, . . . , 11, buzz, 13, . . . , 19, buzz, buzz, buzz, . . . , 30, 31, buzz, 33, etc.

You can combine rules. Ex. Odd numbers and numbers with 2s:
Buzz, buzz, buzz, 4, . . . , 10, buzz, buzz, buzz, 14, . . . , 18, buzz, buzz, buzz, . . . , 30, buzz, buzz, buzz, 34, buzz, 36, etc.

As your child gets older you can use other patterns for buzz: multiples, perfect squares, primes, Fibonacci numbers, etc.

Wow. Mom of a younger child here. This totally wasn’t on my radar. I read. We count things. That’s about it. In your experience, what percentage of greater DC parents are this serious about math, and how young?

[Anonymous]

Thanks for a lot of great recs and ideas! -OP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Play games. They almost always have a math component (keeping score, making moves, etc.) and encourage logical thinking. Some, like Sleeping Queens and Monopoly, incorporate math more directly. My kids enjoyed playing Bingo with Froot Loops as tokens even when they were older (you could pick any treat for tokens).

Teach them about money and consider giving an allowance. I think learning about money is one of the best things to teach kids about math. It teaches addition, subtraction, place value, regrouping, and introduces multiplication.

Teach them how to tell time on an analog watch (they make some designed for learning).

https://www.amazon.com/kids-teaching-watch/s?k=kids+teaching+watch

Cooking is excellent for fractions. For added challenge, you could have them double or halve recipes.

Crafts can be great for math.

Give them a tape measure and/or a timer.

Sudoku

Magic Squares

Hoagies has enrichment links for all subjects. Here's the page for math links:

https://www.hoagiesgifted.org/math.htm

The National Library of Virtual Manipulatives lets kids play with and explore math concepts online.

http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/vlibrary.html

Sir Cumference books by Cindy Neuschwander provide an introduction to geometry topics.

Secret codes might be interesting. The Seymour Sleuth mysteries are great picture books by Doug Cushman. The Third Grade Detectives mystery series by George E. Stanley are chapter books that explore secret codes deeper.

Cyberchase is a great PBS show focusing on math.

Zoombinis is a great computer game focusing on logic.

A verbal game called buzz is great for practicing most math concepts. You pick a pattern and then start counting, substituting the word buzz for words that fit the pattern. To make it more interesting you can combine rules.

Ex. Numbers with 2s:
1, buzz, 3, 4, . . . , 11, buzz, 13, . . . , 19, buzz, buzz, buzz, . . . , 30, 31, buzz, 33, etc.

You can combine rules. Ex. Odd numbers and numbers with 2s:
Buzz, buzz, buzz, 4, . . . , 10, buzz, buzz, buzz, 14, . . . , 18, buzz, buzz, buzz, . . . , 30, buzz, buzz, buzz, 34, buzz, 36, etc.

As your child gets older you can use other patterns for buzz: multiples, perfect squares, primes, Fibonacci numbers, etc.

Wow. Mom of a younger child here. This totally wasn’t on my radar. I read. We count things. That’s about it. In your experience, what percentage of greater DC parents are this serious about math, and how young?

About 90 percent. Start no later than 3 months.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Play games. They almost always have a math component (keeping score, making moves, etc.) and encourage logical thinking. Some, like Sleeping Queens and Monopoly, incorporate math more directly. My kids enjoyed playing Bingo with Froot Loops as tokens even when they were older (you could pick any treat for tokens).

Teach them about money and consider giving an allowance. I think learning about money is one of the best things to teach kids about math. It teaches addition, subtraction, place value, regrouping, and introduces multiplication.

Teach them how to tell time on an analog watch (they make some designed for learning).

https://www.amazon.com/kids-teaching-watch/s?k=kids+teaching+watch

Cooking is excellent for fractions. For added challenge, you could have them double or halve recipes.

Crafts can be great for math.

Give them a tape measure and/or a timer.

Sudoku

Magic Squares

Hoagies has enrichment links for all subjects. Here's the page for math links:

https://www.hoagiesgifted.org/math.htm

The National Library of Virtual Manipulatives lets kids play with and explore math concepts online.

http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/vlibrary.html

Sir Cumference books by Cindy Neuschwander provide an introduction to geometry topics.

Secret codes might be interesting. The Seymour Sleuth mysteries are great picture books by Doug Cushman. The Third Grade Detectives mystery series by George E. Stanley are chapter books that explore secret codes deeper.

Cyberchase is a great PBS show focusing on math.

Zoombinis is a great computer game focusing on logic.

A verbal game called buzz is great for practicing most math concepts. You pick a pattern and then start counting, substituting the word buzz for words that fit the pattern. To make it more interesting you can combine rules.

Ex. Numbers with 2s:
1, buzz, 3, 4, . . . , 11, buzz, 13, . . . , 19, buzz, buzz, buzz, . . . , 30, 31, buzz, 33, etc.

You can combine rules. Ex. Odd numbers and numbers with 2s:
Buzz, buzz, buzz, 4, . . . , 10, buzz, buzz, buzz, 14, . . . , 18, buzz, buzz, buzz, . . . , 30, buzz, buzz, buzz, 34, buzz, 36, etc.

As your child gets older you can use other patterns for buzz: multiples, perfect squares, primes, Fibonacci numbers, etc.

Wow. Mom of a younger child here. This totally wasn’t on my radar. I read. We count things. That’s about it. In your experience, what percentage of greater DC parents are this serious about math, and how young?

I'm the poster who posted the quoted list. My point is that math is in everything. I bet you do things like games, crafts, and cooking (even making a sandwich and folding/cutting it in half counts - you don't need to give a formal lesson, they'll absorb a lot from exposure.) OP's original post (pre-math to elementary) led me to post a range of ideas that I thought would cover the years from preschool through elementary.

The extra-mathy enrichment is because I had a mathy kid. It took me by surprise because I was NOT a mathy kid. These are some of the things I found trying to keep up with her. They're not things I view as necessary to education, just for fun to those who enjoy this sort of thing.

(The one thing I would suggest as critical to math education is keeping them away from calculators until they're doing High School level math. My children's elementary pushed calculator use. I told my kids to do as directed at school, but they weren't allowed to use calculators on homework without permission.)

How young? We played games like Candy Land, Memory, and Chutes and Ladders when they were very young. Like you, we counted various things sometimes. We "cooked" and did crafts. I really didn't think about doing Math until my kid took the lead. We didn't do all of this at once. When my kids showed an interest in larger numbers we played Froot Loop Bingo. Games like Sleeping Queens which require basic addition would be for older kids (early elementary). Monopoly would be intended for still older kids. (These specific games are not requirements, just examples of possibilities.)

Just follow their lead and they'll let you know what they want to do. This is not about being serious about math. It's about recognizing that because math's in everything, they get pre-math and math from just having fun. IF they are interested, there are lots of math focused resources and activities to do for fun.

[Anonymous]

Math games are just fine to start out with. As they get older you can start adding activities and more complicated concepts.

DS wanted to play the Han Solo card game (same game from the Han Solo movie). The game requires some basic understanding of adding/subtracting positive and negative numbers and being relatively quick about it so you don't slow down the game too much. DS is in 3rd grade, so he hasn't learned about negative numbers in school. He had to learn about adding and subtracting negative numbers to play and its stuck with him. Its funny how certain kids are motivated when it comes to math.