SUSummerMath

Question: How can I help my child maintain his/her math skills over the summer?

Practice the Facts

Helping your child retain his or her fluency with the basic facts is easy to do if practice is kept short (5-10 mins) and consistent (daily). Whatever the practice looks like make sure it is engaging for your child. Consider investing in a couple of games to pull out at the campsite or a facts CD to play on those long vacation drives. Most of all, underscore that math achievement is built on effort and practice.

The games highlighted below can be obtained through web-based vendors. Several are also available through Amazon and can be found at the Westford Toy Shop.

Look for games that emphasize:

“Experimental studies have demonstrated that changing children’s beliefs from a focus on ability to a focus on effort increases their engagement in mathematics learning, which in turn improves mathematics outcomes; when children believe that their efforts make them “smarter,” they show greater persistence in mathematics learning.” from the March 2008 Federal Math Advisory Report

The Hiding Game

If your child needs work with subtraction facts, you may want to begin with this basic game. It can help develop flexible and efficient whole number computation.

This game is appropriate for children ages 5 and up and can be used with numbers up to 20.

Materials: Any identical counters. (Cereal, beans, or small pasta shells all work just fine here!)

Procedure: Have your child count out a specific number of counters. Hide some in your palm and show the rest on the table. Ask: how many am I hiding? Continue with different combinations. Extend the activity by modeling how to write the corresponding equations.

One of the best ways to support your child’s math skills over the summer is to build their mathematical vocabulary through literature. There are dozens of exciting texts that cover a broad range of topics with captivating pictures and stories. Consider exploring cross-curricular connections with books such as, “Math Games and Activities from Around the World,” by Claudia Zaslavsky or “Count Your Way Through Japan,” by Jim Haskins. Also be sure to check out books from the Children’s Room at the Groton Public Library for a variety of titles.

Math, history, geography, art, and world cultures come together in this delightful book for kids who think math is boring. More than 70 math games, puzzles, and projects from all over of the world are included. Learners will hone their math skills as they use geometry to design game boards and logical thinking to work out strategies or analyze the outcomes of games of chance. Activities include building a model pyramid, testing the golden ratio of the Parthenon, and working maze-like African network puzzles.

Count Your Way Through Japan presents the numbers one to ten in Japanese, using each number to introduce concepts about Japan and its culture.

In Count on Pablo, the boy helps his abuela pick, wash, and count out garden produce to take to market. He counts the limes one by one, the onions by twos, the peppers by fives, and the tomatoes by tens. When no one buys anything, Pablo suggests that they make salsa, which then attracts many customers. The book has colorful, realistic drawings that clearly show what is being counted or grouped. While the math is an integral part of the stories, it doesn't overpower them. The back cover suggests related activities.

Activity	What's the Math?
When driving, taking the bus or walking:
About how many blocks until we get to a certain place? (Then count and find out.)	Estimating, measuring distances, counting
About how long will it take to get to a certain place? (Then time it to find out.)	Estimating, measuring time
How many dogs, stop signs or traffic lights do you think we will see along the way?	Predicting, collecting data, counting
How many stamps can I buy for a certain amount of money?	Division
Can you sort the clothes into whites and colors to wash them? What about sorting into three categories?	Sorting and classifying data
How many pair of socks can we make if there are 14 single socks? (Or, if there are 5 pairs, how many socks is that?)	Multiplication, division

Math situations pop up all the time. You can do math with your child every day by engaging your child in daily activities that involve math. See the table below for some wonderful ideas taken from the website investigations.terc.edu under For Families: Doing Math Together.

These games and activities will surely keep your child afloat with math all summer. If you have questions about the suggestions made here or have good ideas to share, please email me or call 978-448-6155 Ext. 1372. Have a terrific summer vacation!

Contact: Elaine Herzog, K4 Math Curriculum Coordinator, 344 Main Street, Groton, MA 01450 PH# 978-448-6155 Ext. 1372