Making Math as Easy as 1, 2, 3
Basic addition and subtraction start children on the road to learning mathematics. Most children already know how to count when they start in pre-school or Kindergarten but do they really understand what that means and how it will be used in everyday life? Most probably do as they learn to count on their fingers or with the number of trees in their yard.
Today’s world is more complex although simplified in many ways because of the use of calculators or “crutches” that weren’t used years ago when teaching mathematics. Therefore, it is important for children to fully understand how numbers relate to what they will use as they go through life. Learning measurements to describe how tall they are or how large a room is are concepts that make it easy for them to understand and relate it visually. Anything that can be graphically or pictorially shown makes the concept easier to grasp.
Visual aids are a tremendous help in helping children make sense of theories and concepts but they can see the actuality in front of them. Using money to show fractions or percentages helps. In geometry they will learn to identify shapes and figure out how to measure an area. Learning mathematics well will impact them for the rest of their lives. It will affect them in business or in their job. It will affect them with learning to budget or to provide a tip to a waiter or to determine what salary increase to give a worker.
In other words, the elementary math skills that you are teaching children today will affect the way the adults of tomorrow are able to manage their lives and function in an increasingly difficult and more complex world – where math is just one small fraction of what obstacles they will face.
