Mathematics Kids: Raising a Math Genius
As we all know, Mathematics or Math is a universal tool or a special language in itself. A lot of transactions in the areas of business, economics, trade, purchasing, marketing, investments, finance and even medicine deal with numbers, calculations and measurements which are the basic fundamentals of mathematics. Parents play a major role in any child’s development especially when it comes to Mathematics. It is important that kids are provided with a strong foundation for them to actually be able to do well in Math. Of course, raising a Math genius requires not only a strong educational foundation but also the guidance of the children’s parents. Here are some guidelines on how you can raise a Math genius:
Familiarize your kids on Math principles at an early age. Basic Math principles like counting, addition and subtraction should be introduced to children at a very young age. Guiding a two year old through the use of everyday real-life objects can be beneficial for this purpose. For example, you can ask your kid how many pieces of gummy bears he wants or how many of the blue and the green marshmallows he would like to eat. Making him give you a number is teaching him Math early on.
Allow your kids to play Math games. Children are true lovers of games and what better way to use games for than teaching Math and opening them to the world numbers. Parents should introduce their children to simple but useful Math games from the simple Snakes and Ladders® early on to Monopoly® when they reach school age. They will learn to appreciate not only what numbers can do (moving them forward) but also numbers in relation to the value of money.
Educate your kids through the use of Math tables or charts. Place Math tables or charts in strategic places in your home. In this way, children get interested with numbers especially toddlers who get amazed at numbers and pictures of toys or things they see around. You can teach a toddler one number a day by placing number cards in strategic positions like in his play area and associating the number with a piece of toy, number 1 for 1 ball, number 2 for fire trucks, etc.
Be involved in your kids Math progress. Most parents do not take interest in their children’s progress in Math most especially when they did not do well in the same subject during their school days. Parents who did not do well in Math feel that they cannot give their kids any added information that may help improve their children’s mathematical abilities. The truth is you do not need to be a Math teacher nor a genius to be able to give your kids the attention they need. In fact, you might even learn something new and besides you can get all the Math help you need through books or the internet.
Do not be totally dependent on your kids’ school or Math teachers. As parents, you should be there to inspire your children. You should be able to envision your child’s future and his successes. You should have an active role in your child’s educational life by finding out what his/her educational needs and desires are from the time he is able to react to you and the environment. Do not leave your child’s education to other people especially to his/her teachers because there is only so much and so many that their teachers can handle. You, as parents, should be the one concentrating on your child’s mathematical abilities.
Expose your kids. Bring your kids to the bank so that you can explain to them the value of money. If possible, let them open their own bank account and let them count how much they are going to put away in the bank. In this way they will understand how to set aside or to budget the money they have. Bring them when you go shopping and give them a personal budget. They will learn how many they can buy for a certain amount thus teaching them the basic mathematical operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division without them noticing it. When you expose your kids to such areas computing will come naturally to them.
Do not pressure your kids. In this age where even young children already feel the stress and the competitive atmosphere in school, do not pressure your kids to excel. They do not need additional pressure at home. Failure should be looked at as something positive because your kids should understand that failing in a test is not a disaster that cannot be recovered but rather should come out as a learning experience. Anyway even if they do so much better you will still have to find ways to challenge them because they might lose interest.
Let your children have fun. Studies have shown that children learn better and retain information easily when they are having fun learning. So do not take them away from those computer games, board games or the internet! Instead, check out those internet games with them so that you can guide them as to what games would enhance their math abilities. As parents, you should be able to discern those sites which would be able to give them content that will better enhance their abilities as well as allow them the freedom to discover things for themselves.
Raising a Math genius may be a tough job but with the help of other resources you will still be able to find time to have fun yourself together with your kids. You only need to be an active participant in your children’s quest for knowledge and in providing them the balance they need in life. Who knows? Your kid might just be the next Einstein!
