Supporting Students in Math:

at Home, at School
& in the Community
 Supporting Students at Home
First at foremost, for students to succeed in
math, support must begin at home and from
the start. How can you do this?
 Teach your child to have a Growth Mindset.
Research shows that when we teach our
children to persevere and to work through
challenges their brains actually grow. It's ok
to let your child struggle sometimes.
 Praise your child for the process, not the
product.
 Instill positive perspectives. Be aware of
your own attitudes around math. Show
excitement about math around your child.
 Encourage your child to pay attention to
their mistakes (Schroder et. al, 2017).
“Kids pick up this attitude and live
their lives believing that math is a
horrible monster that they have to
face in their academic lives”
(Raise Smart Kid, 2015).
 Supporting Students at Home Con’t
 Use Math Talk starting at an early stage.
 For example, when you go for a card ride, point to numbers you see on route, at the grocery store discuss prices, and during
home routines talk about time.
 Play games.
 “[Parents] should also avoid mixing the two roles: parent and teacher. In the setting of games, they can achieve these goals”
(Sharma, 2012).
 Examples of games are Battleship, Yahtzee, Go Fish (but go make 10), adaptations to war (such as multiplication war), Snakes
and Ladders, Settlers of Catan or any other game that involves math concepts like adding, subtracting, multiplying, probability,
and strategy.
 Educate yourself by watching YouTube videos, reading articles, or purchasing books.
 Read books with mathematical themes to your child.
 Reward your child when they master a skill.
 Make math a fun competition.
 Sing songs or Rhymes (Sharma, 2012)
 One, two, three, four, five, once I caught a fish alive: six, seven, eight, nine, ten, then I let him go again.
 Limit screen time.
 “Much of the issue lies with the fact that what makes tablets and iPhones so great—dozens of stimuli at your fingertips, and the
ability to process multiple actions simultaneously—is exactly what young brains do not need” (Margalit, 2016).

“Parents who engage in “math talk” provide their kid with a solid math foundation for
later math achievement.  Those who explain to their kids about numbers and spatial
relationships by way of gestures and words tend to instill better math skills at age 4”
(Raise Smart Kid, 2015).
Supporting Students at School
 Don't just give students the answers, let them explore.
 Allow students to work collaboratively and in community.
 Create a safe place, in which students feel comfortable taking risks and sometimes failing.
 Create a safe space for failure. Allow Children to make mistakes and to persevere (Mighton, 2013).
 “Provide risks that students can succeed in so they feel successful” (Mighton, 2013).
 Make math fun. Give time and opportunities for students to play games.
 Incorporate other subjects into math, such as Language Arts.
 Read books about math. Visit
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/14440.Top_Rated_Educational_Math_Books_for_Children_
 Use math Journals
 Create a word wall with math words
 Scaffold lessons so that all students can experience success, including those with special needs.
 Foster Growth Mindsets. Continually remind students that they can do hard things!
 Seek opportunities for Professional Development. Consider joining a lesson study or creating lunch and
learn opportunities.
 Give kids instant feedback (Mighton, 2013).
 Explain as little as possible, but allow the kids to do most of the exploring.
Supporting Students at School Con’t
 Provide an assortment of hands on materials and tools to develop skills:
 2D Geometric Shapes  Dice  Playing Cards
 3D Shape Blocks  Geoboards  Rainbow Fraction
Circles
 Attribute Blocks  Geometry kits
(compass &  Rulers
 Balance Weight
protractor)  Tangrams
 Base Ten Blocks  Measuring Cups and  Tiles
 Calculators Cubes
 Whiteboards and Dry
 Clocks  Miras
Erase Markers
 Counters  Money
 Cuisenaire Rods  Multifix Cubes
 Pattern Blocks
 Pentominoes
Supporting Students in the Community
 Play games with neighbors and friends in the community. Share excitement
about math and games.
 Join a Math Clubs like Mathletics.
 www.mathletics.com
 Look into registering for Odyessey of the Mind.
 Though it is not specific to math, this program is great for teaching children to
problem solve and developing growth mindest.
 https://www.odysseyofthemind.com/join/
 Ask your school if you can participate in challenge programs.
 Look into summer programs offered by your school district. Many districts run
additional and engaging programs during the summer to develop mathematics.
 Join a summer camp offered by your city. In Surrey, students can join a wide
variety of coding camps.
 https://www.surrey.ca/parks-recreation/recreation-programs/summer-day-camps
References
How To Make Math Fun. Raise Smart Kid. (2015, August 28).
https://www.raisesmartkid.com/all-ages/1-articles/53-how-to-make-math-fun.
Margalit, L. (2016, April). What Screen Time Can Really Do to Kids' Brains.
Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/behind-online-
behavior/201604/what-screen-time-can-really-do-kids-brains.
Mirsky, S. (2013, August 7). Kids JUMP for Math [John Mighton's Junior
Undiscovered Math Prodigies]. Scientific American.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/kids-jump-for-math-john-
mightons-ju-13-08-07/.
Schroder, H., Moser, J., & Henion, A. (2017, January 30). Kids should pay more
attention to mistakes, study suggests. MSUToday.
https://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2017/kids-should-pay-more-attention-to-
mistakes-study-suggests.
Sharma, M. (2012). Prerequisite Skills and Mathematics Learning [PDF].
Mathematics for All.