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How can parents help? Article from NCTM Magazine.
To help ramp up the quality of parent-child math discourse, Kessinger’s school decided to host family math game nights. “These evenings offer parents a fun, stress-free environment in which to begin meaningful mathematical conversations with their children,” she says. The tone is quite different from standard PTA nights, which intimidate some parents. For the game nights, parents are encouraged to bring their children, obviating the need for babysitters, and students urge their parents to come so they can show off their game-playing skills – and play with their friends. There are a number of benefits to a well-run game night: - Parents find out more about their children’s math strengths and weaknesses. - Teachers model questioning techniques for parents and show them how to initiate good math conversations with their children. - Parents model real interest in mathematics by playing games with their children and watching them play with each other. - Students spend additional time building their math skills and content knowledge. - Multiplication War – Each player flips over two cards and players compare their product. This game lends itself to being boosted to a higher level, with teachers showing parents how to scaffold struggling students (“I know you recall what five times seven is, or five groups of seven; how can you use that fact to solve six times seven?”) and ask about their children’s thought process (“How did you find six times seven?”). - Name That Number – One player shuffles a deck of cards (with jacks, queens, and kings removed), deals four cards to each player, and places one card where everyone can see it (that’s the target number). Players then work to add, subtract, multiply, or divide their four numbers to get to the target (lower grades might start with two cards). During the game, engage in thinking about the math. For example, instead of, What is your answer? asking: - How did you get your answer? - Can you solve it any other way? - Why does it work? - Is it always true? “Illustrate how children’s reasoning, process, and proof have taken the forefront in education – although fact fluency is still important.” Excerpt from “Family Game Nights” by Stephanie Kessinger in Teaching Children Mathematics, October 2014 (Vol. 21, #3, p. 146-152), www.nctm.org; Kessinger is at stephanie.chlebus@gmail.com. Keep on learning through the year too!
Summer Help Read this article on Summer Learning Loss! Here are some places to help your child avoid learning loss! Greg Tang Math Summer Program provides a fun math challenge for students! Ten Marks is providing free Summer Math help for families. https://www.tenmarks.com/summermath Wowzers is providing Summer Help programs for students. Provides summer activities that are fun and challenging to keep math skills https://www.teachervision.com/math/printable/50722.html Calculation Nation from NCTM http://calculationnation.nctm.org/ provides some great games! Beestar provides innovative online math and reading exercises for kids. Time 4 Learning provides summer opportunities for a monthly fee. Math Games has its own page now! Look at the navigation buttons in the header! |
Understanding the new state assessments
States teaching the Common Core State Standards took a new test of reading and mathematics in 2015. http://understandthescore.org/ provides information on how to read the PARCC score results. Great Schools has partnered with the testing consortia to provide information to parents about the test results for both PARCC and SBAC. Click on the link below, then choose your state and grade level. Remember, tests are given in grade 3-high school. http://www.greatschools.org/gk/common-core-test-guide/ Common Core Resources Why is math so different! Parents have a hard time understanding the difference in teaching math as well as teachers. However, the changes called for in teaching mathematics is to help prepare students for higher levels of mathematics, needed for our new world! Read this blog to help understand these differences. http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/04/02/the-problem-with-math-problems-were-solving-them-wrong/?smid=tw-share&_r=0 This video helps to clear up some confusions about the Common Core Standards for Mathematics! The Student Achievement Partners website Achieve the Core has created a wealth of information and materials to help educators and parents understand the Common Core. Several guides are available from a few good resources. The the Common Core Standards will require substantial use of technology for learning. Learn more about 21st Century Learning. The new PARCC assessment has a one page information document explaining the new assessments that will take place in 2014-15. The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) has a website with great resources for parents and educators. The parent resources, http://www.nctm.org/resources/families.aspx, provide several links for explaining mathematics today, how to help with homework, and a link to Figure This. Figure This has some great family activities! In addition, Calculation Nation, is for upper elementary and older students. They will play online math strategy games that allow them to learn about fractions, factors, multiples, symmetry and more, as well as practice important skills like basic multiplication and calculating area. Math in Focus Resources Math in Focus is the Singapore Mathematics Curriculum rewritten for the United States. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt are the publishers and provide resources here, http://www.hmhco.com/shop/education-curriculum/math/math-in-focus-singapore-math K-5 Students and Parents - https://www-k6.thinkcentral.com . Each child will need their username and password to access the site. Online manipulatives, activities, and parent videos are available. Grades 6-8 Students and Parents - http://my.hrw.com/ Each student will need their username and passwor to access the site. Online manipulatives, activities, and parent videos are available. Eureka Math/Engage NY Resources https://greatminds.org/math/parents Provides parent resources for the Eureka Math curricula. |
Online Math Resources
The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Parent resources - http://www.nctm.org/resources/families.aspx
APPS
Math Apps and Learning Tools - http://www.commonsensemedia.org/mobile-app-lists/math-apps-and-learning-tools-for-kids
Best apps for math that matched the Common Core Standards. Also search for Singapore Math Apps and King of Math. Both great resources for students whether they are using Singapore Math curriculum or not.
Math Champ Challenge (Common Core Standards) is the latest educational game from award winning INKids Education. It is designed to help strengthen understanding of Common Core mathematical standards for middle school students (grades 4-7). Other apps are listed at the top of the page!
Math Apps and Learning Tools - http://www.commonsensemedia.org/mobile-app-lists/math-apps-and-learning-tools-for-kids
Best apps for math that matched the Common Core Standards. Also search for Singapore Math Apps and King of Math. Both great resources for students whether they are using Singapore Math curriculum or not.
Math Champ Challenge (Common Core Standards) is the latest educational game from award winning INKids Education. It is designed to help strengthen understanding of Common Core mathematical standards for middle school students (grades 4-7). Other apps are listed at the top of the page!
