Don't read this if your children are happily following their regular school math curriculum at home. Do read this if you need to be reassured that the activities your children prefer to do may actually have educational value. Right now, my children prefer to play board games.** And not the board games I like. Today... Continue Reading →
Now that both my children are school-aged, I am challenged to find mathy moments that will support their "school math" while also being interesting, engaging, and creative. I want to help them with the curriculum they are learning at school, AND I want them to enjoy playing with math. As they get older, I can... Continue Reading →
I am holding on to the belief that it is possible to take my kids somewhere - out to dinner, on a car trip -- without having to hand over an electronic device to keep them occupied. To that end, I am always on the lookout for little things to have at the ready in... Continue Reading →
Not sure how to get your kids to play math? Here's one way...strategically leave something out for them to discover. We all know that if we require our kids to do something, we will often get push-back. But...if the kid is choosing to engage on his own, the same activity that otherwise was "required" is... Continue Reading →
I grew up playing ping-pong in my family's basement. And in the garage. And, on nice days, in the driveway. My father would roll the table out for picnic and grill parties and challenge anyone willing to take him on. He was good. I could talk about how my eye-hand coordination strengthened from playing often... Continue Reading →
I keep saying that games are a great way to build and reinforce math concepts, but even so, I am pleasantly surprised when I see it actually happening in action. I saw it happening again last week...not quite a year after I first introduced Yahtzee! to my younger son. We brought Yahtzee! with us on... Continue Reading →
I loved playing the game Rack-O as a kid. And, darn it, my kids are going to love it, too. The concept of Rack-O, a classic Milton-Bradley game, is simple; get a set of 10 cards in ascending order before your opponent does. Strategy and patience are necessary, though, as you decide whether to draw... Continue Reading →
I love lazy math. Not the kind of lazy math that students do when they don't show their work or document their reasoning, but the kind of lazy math parents do when we inspire our children's curiosity without having to do a lot of planning or instruction. It is one of those unwritten rules of... Continue Reading →
It's time for summer. The real summer. The one where there's no school, the kids are free to do their own thing, and everybody relaxes and recharges. Did you just snort your coffee through your nose? Are you rolling your eyes at me while you puzzle-piece your calendar together so the kids are fully enrolled... Continue Reading →
Got some sidewalk chalk lying around? Tired of watching your kids draw the same old flowers and rainbows and such? Get mathy with that chalk! Recently I drew a timeline on the ground. Not the usual kind of timeline, though. I drew 5 long lines parallel to each other on the ground and labelled them... Continue Reading →
mathy moments 