Trust Your Teacher and Give New Math a Chance
As parents we know it's not just our kids who shudder at the thought of math homework and tests; we too feel unprepared at times because we do not understand (or remember) how it all works in grade school. Cindy Hallman-Morris, math teacher, of MildlyManicMom.com is here to tell us that yes math is changing, but her tip is to embrace it, ask questions and help develop your child's "math literacy." Read an excerpt of her teacher tip below and catch the whole thing here.
What has it meant to learn math in school for the past 50 years? There were formulas and rules and we would teach one concept at a time. As teachers we would make links to other mathematical topics when we would start a new concept, but not too many kids were actually following. Learn a skill, practice it a bazillion times, memorize what it was called so you could do it on the test, learn a new skill, practice it a bazillion times…. You remember.School math is changing. Why? Because the world has changed so drastically in the last 50 years. I can still remember seeing my first cell phone but the children in school now have never lived without the internet. We badly need students with math literacy and a strong number sense to be ready for jobs we have not even imagined.
When my daughter was in elementary school and they were learning about division, it was everything I could do not to pull out that old algorithm we all learned in the United States. Put the first number “in the house”, etc. Did you ever understand exactly why that would give you the right answer? I held my tongue while my daughter broke the numbers into chunks and really got to the idea of division. This is math literacy.
Picture Courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net
About Cindy: This is my 18th year in the high school classroom. I have a masters in Mathematics Education and am National Board Certified. I am an active member of the Math Leadership Team for our county and help run workshops for county teachers. Parent of a middle school and a high school child. Follow me on facebook - twitter - and pinterest!
