Math can be a loved and enjoyable subject for some children and feel like a necessary evil for others (well they may not see it as ‘necessary’). Is there a way you can make math relatable and enjoyable for everyone?
Math is one of the most used skills throughout our lives, and while some of your children may excel at mathematical practices and take their skills to the next level, even those children who suffer from math anxiety can overcome their struggles and see math as a challenge worthy of their time.
Making math an activity and learning how to appeal to your child’s learning style are a couple of ways to make a math marvel out of all your learners. Knowledge joined with good old-fashioned practice and confidence will also be the simple solution to your child's math struggles. When they believe they are good at something, then they naturally put forth the mental effort to get past the next challenge. This is true for all levels of math from the most basic addition all the way to advanced algebra, calculus, and beyond.
So, the question then becomes, how can you increase your child’s math skills? How can you help them gain confidence so that when the going gets tough or they make a mistake, they forge on and overcome rather than get frustrated and give up?
Part of the answer is to show love and patience when you are both struggling to work through math concepts because there will be a mental struggle to learn any new skill. The right attitude to carry them through is what determines whether they will truly grasp the concept or just push through to get it over with.
[scripture focus:] “And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also; knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope; and hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given to us.” (Romans 5:3-5)
The other part of the answer is to try out and experiment with different teaching resources and methods to find the ones that work best for you and your child. Be patient - understanding will come with all math concepts. You’ll likely be surprised when a real life experience triggers your learner to recall the skills they have struggled with and they get a clear understanding.
Check out the math helps we’ve compiled below and reach out to other homeschoolers to get some insight on options that worked for them.
Math Programs and Resources
Spotlight on Math and Math Supplements - A small collection of companies offering programs and games that will have your child learning various skills in connection with math instruction and application to the real world.
5 Simple Homemade Math Manipulatives - Manipulatives are an essential part of math instruction. This article includes five manipulatives you can make at home which are simple to create. You’ll find directions for each along with a few tips on how to use them to support your math instruction.
Amusing Mathematics - A Free Fun Family Math EBook
Enjoy 20+ pages of math tricks, games, and puzzles that everyone in the family can get in on. You’ll also get many additional resources linked in the eBook as well as copywork pages with fun math phrases, recipes, and an answer key.
E-Books in The Old Schoolhouse® Store
Could you use some fresh ideas to help your child “get” certain math skills? Get a better grasp of the way children gain and retain math skills when you read the WeE-book™. Learn strategies for certain math concepts that can become a hurdle to learning.
Building Strong Arithmetic Thinking
Is your early math curriculum just not working? Is your young child not “getting” arithmetic? Can’t figure out exactly why nothing is quite clicking? Find the answers that can help you sort out what’s happening.
Courses on SchoolhouseTeachers.com
Hands-On Math Help with Cuisenaire Rods
Hands-On Math Help homeschool lessons using Cuisenaire rods are designed to empower parents to help their children learn. Its purpose is to help homeschool parents of students in preschool-3rd grade make math enjoyable instead of frustrating. Through a free app and math tutorial videos, Philip Rowlands shows parents how to teach math in a manner that involves play, directed activities, open-ended tasks, and challenges. Hands-On Math Help homeschool lessons are designed to work with Cuisenaire rods, but instructions for creating a homemade set are included.
Math lessons for elementary through high school on different math concepts delivered through various forms of media like PowerPoint slides, video, interactive content and songs!
The Math Center provides easy access to many of the math-related resources available on SchoolhouseTeachers.com. You’ll find videos, games, eBooks, and other instructional materials about fractions, geometry, addition, decimals, division, and more.
Don’t have a SchoolhouseTeachers.com membership yet? Email smorrison@theoldschoolhouse.com to request your 3-month trial membership.
This article has been written by homeschooling staff writers of The Canadian Schoolhouse (TCS). Enjoy more of our content from TCS contributors and staff writers by visiting our Front Door page that has content on our monthly theme and links to all our content sections.
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"Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it" (Proverbs 22:6).