Sometimes my children would utter the terrible words, "I hate Math." I usually told them that as soon as the light went on and they understood the concept they were having trouble with, they would again love math. I've always loved math and tried to spread that enthusiasm to my children...and it worked. I hear them say some of the things I had told them, like: Math is easy once you learn the concept; it's black and white; it's either right or wrong; it's not wishy-washy.
Dale Reed writes: "Parents must indicate their enthusiasm for applying math in their everyday living. When taking trips together, over the dinner table… whenever there set an example of a person who is continually calculating and approximating numbers in your head and on paper." I agree wholeheartedly. Mental math is a good practice to establish and one that will be used throughout life. Here are some ideas to get you started:
- Determine how much cheaper (in percentages) it is to buy food in larger quantities.
- Determine how much more an automobile costs if it is purchased on time instead of cash.
- It is a good exercise to measure and draw plan views of each floor of your house calculating the square footage, etc.
- The height of trees can be estimated using a angle measuring device, a tape measure, and the tangent function.
- Various electrical calculations for appliances in the home are easy once you learn how to use Ohms law.
- Change number of servings in a recipe and calculate each ingredient.
- When eating out, let each child total their order, adding tax and tip. (This is a good practice to prepare for eating out with groups of people as they get older.)
- Determine the cost of items on sale - clothing, toys, computer games, etc.
- Play "guess the number," answering higher or lower with each guess.
How do you use math in your home? Share your ideas with us in the forum or send me an [mailto:homeschooling.guide@about.com]email.
Related resources:
- Grocery Cart Math
- Family Math (compare prices)
- Family Math II (compare prices)
- Family Math for Young Children (compare prices)
- Family Math: The Middle School Years (compare prices)
- Games for Math (compare prices)
