Little Ways to Make Learning Math Easier
Here are my "helpful hints" to be successful in math this year:
Know your multiplication facts forwards, backwards, sideways, and upside down!!! You should have these pretty well memorized by now, but if not, you need to set aside extra time to make flashcards and practice them every day/night until your facts become a part of your dreams! You don't want to stumble in the middle of a multi-step problem simply because you cannot recall your multiplication facts. (I don't recommend standing on your head the whole time - your face will probably turn really red!)
Complete your homework EVERY DAY. Homework is designed to help you learn the material from each lesson. If you don't understand yesterday, you won't know today, and you most definitely won't understand tomorrow!
Learn from your mistakes! Make corrections on your homework once it has been returned to you! Not only do you get all the points back you've lost, you learn more when you can find and fix your mistakes.
Ask questions! Don't be afraid to ask a question out of fear of looking stupid. Trust me, if you have a question, chances are someone else has the exact same question - so be responsible and speak up. The greatest people in the world spend more time asking questions then they do answering them!
Don't be afraid to guess! The beauty of math is that there is often more than one way to solve a problem! If you at least guess, I know you were looking at the problem and thinking about it. This will make it easier for us to sit down and solve it together!
Don't allow yourself to get frustrated - I'm here to help you.
When adults and kids get frustrated our mind shuts down. Remember, learning to walk or ride a bicycle doesn't happen overnight - neither does mastering math concepts! It takes lots of practice, practice, practice!
Know your multiplication facts forwards, backwards, sideways, and upside down!!! You should have these pretty well memorized by now, but if not, you need to set aside extra time to make flashcards and practice them every day/night until your facts become a part of your dreams! You don't want to stumble in the middle of a multi-step problem simply because you cannot recall your multiplication facts. (I don't recommend standing on your head the whole time - your face will probably turn really red!)
Complete your homework EVERY DAY. Homework is designed to help you learn the material from each lesson. If you don't understand yesterday, you won't know today, and you most definitely won't understand tomorrow!
Learn from your mistakes! Make corrections on your homework once it has been returned to you! Not only do you get all the points back you've lost, you learn more when you can find and fix your mistakes.
Ask questions! Don't be afraid to ask a question out of fear of looking stupid. Trust me, if you have a question, chances are someone else has the exact same question - so be responsible and speak up. The greatest people in the world spend more time asking questions then they do answering them!
Don't be afraid to guess! The beauty of math is that there is often more than one way to solve a problem! If you at least guess, I know you were looking at the problem and thinking about it. This will make it easier for us to sit down and solve it together!
Don't allow yourself to get frustrated - I'm here to help you.
When adults and kids get frustrated our mind shuts down. Remember, learning to walk or ride a bicycle doesn't happen overnight - neither does mastering math concepts! It takes lots of practice, practice, practice!
