Math-Anxiety & Parents

I have a confession to make. As a kid, I detested math, in all kinds, shapes and forms. And, though I hate to admit this (and have never admitted it in the presence of my kids), I used to run away from math every opportunity I got; which made me a big nuisance for my parents and teachers alike. Could never even imagine that one fine day I would be chiding my kids for the same!

But then, would I qualify to be a ‘math anxious’ parent? A study carried out by the University of Chicago recently came up with the conclusion that ‘children of math-anxious parents learned less math over the school year and were more likely to be math-anxious themselves’ (which my kids definitely are).

Susan Levine, who headed the study, had this to say: “Math-anxious parents may be less effective in explaining math concepts to children, and may not respond well when children make a mistake or solve a problem in a novel way.”

Now that I come to think of it, I do tend to consider math-time at home as a chore and as a result am always waiting for it to get over so that I can move on to the so-called ‘bigger’ and ‘better’ subjects which I love teaching my kids; science or language, for instance. Maybe I should just try and get rid of whatever (subconscious) anxiety I have towards math and turn over a new leaf in a way. Who knows, maybe my kids will start loving math too? High hopes, but definitely worth a try.

3 Fun Math Apps – For Tiny Tots to Tweens

“The only way to learn mathematics is to do mathematics.”

Coming from Paul Richard Halmos, the renowned mathematician who is credited with significant advances in several fields of mathematics such as probability theory, statistics and mathematical logic, these words hold so much power. But then when it comes to kids, especially the kindergarten and the just-passed kindergarten ones, getting them to sit down and do mathematics is next to impossible. Hence, parents find themselves turning to other ‘more interesting’ means like online math games, story-telling (for instance, four frogs jumped into a pond, then one more, how many are there in all?), math story books (a popular one is Each Orange Had 8 Slices: A Counting Book by Paul Giganti, Jr. and Donald Crews), to name a few.

Along the same lines, here are three fun math apps for different age groups – from toddlers to middle schoolers – which are an exciting way to help your kids get rid of their math woes.

TallyTots (For 2-4 year olds)
The first thing that strikes you about the interface of this app is that it is extremely colorful – and hence, toddlers as well as preschoolers are going to love it. It is a complete package with twenty different mini-games within it, which begins as twenty cards with numbers spread across a cheerful blue sky background. Among the games is a mathematical puzzle which needs to be solved, a garden with flowers which need to be watered, and even chipmunks that need to be fed with a specific number of acorns. To top it all, the one reason which made me love this app most of all has to be the melodious and very simple to learn sing-along counting song, which kids will pick up in no time whatsoever.

The Counting Kingdom (For 6-10 year olds)
This one is all about magic, monsters and (of course!) math. You have a kingdom of your own and monsters are invading it. Even though the monsters are quite cute, you need to banish them from your kingdom, otherwise there will be huge destruction. But how? Through magic spells of course! As the said monsters gradually start appearing in the form of a grid in front of your fortress, the onus is on you to add their numbers together in such a way so as to whip up three different spells (read: sums) to scare the attackers away. Remember the Plants versus Zombies game, in which one had to attack and destroy zombies with dangerous looking plants? The only difference in The Counting Kingdom is that you need to use math equations in place of plants to attack the approaching monsters. This tower defense strategy game will go a long way in brushing up your little one’s addition skills, as he goes past addition problems with increasing complexity at each of the 30 levels presented in the game.

Math Snacks (For 10-12 year olds)
This app is meant especially for those tweens who don’t particularly adore math. It is something akin to a one-stop shop for parents and teachers of the said age group, replete with teacher and student learning material, games and interactive videos. Very unlike the traditional math that is taught in classrooms, Math Snacks caters primarily to the mathematical learning needs of students of grades 6-8 and presents the subject through a variety of different animations and short games. The fact that this app was created by the New Mexico State University Learning Games Lab is reason enough to introduce your kids to it; a very well-designed interactive math app.

With fascinating apps like these on the rise, who knows, there might soon be a day when we won’t know what ‘math phobia’ actually means!

4 Learning Games for Kids that Build Academic Skills

Play is one of the most important ways in which kids learn new academic skills and practice useful social behaviors. Making play a part of your child’s curriculum ensures that learning is fun and keeps him motivated. There are several online learning games for kids  that help young students build a solid foundation in math, science, social studies, language arts and other subjects required by current elementary school curricula. These games are carefully designed to appeal to an audience that has a notoriously short attention span and gets quickly bored by conventional learning methods. 

Here’s a list of the top 4 online learning games for kids:
1. Math Blaster HyperBlast  

If your child is ready for a fast-paced inter-galactic adventure, have him hop on his HyperCycle  and see if he can get the better of alien robots and get past complicated blockades with nothing but his math skills. This fun learning game for kids has 30 levels of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division and is available in English and Spanish. Players can also adjust the difficulty level and gameplay to match their skill level.    

2. DigitalDialects
If you’re looking for interesting ways to help your child learn another language, Digital Dialects is the place to go. This unique website offers interactive learning games for kids in more than 50 languages from around the world. Players simply click on the language they want to learn and are taken to a page that covers different subjects ranging from colors and vocabulary to food and clothing. Learning a language has never been so easy for kids! 

3. GrandPrix 

Experienced math teachers have contributed their learning tips, techniques and well-kept secrets to design this interactive math learning game for kids. Your child competes with his classmates or online playmates in a thrilling car race that can only be won by solving multiplication problems correctly. The speed of his car depends on how quickly he solves each problem. Players get a huge adrenaline rush as they practice math against time! It’s easy to get hooked to Grand Prix!

4. HistoryGames
Online learning games for kids are often more effective than conventional teaching methods. Kids connect with games on an entirely different level, resulting inparticipatory rather than passive learning.