How to Teach Elementary Math for Kids

A high-tech society depends on future workers gaining a knowledge of basic math.

Parents make it a point to read to their children -- from the child's first day home from the hospital after birth to the first day of kindergarten. This helps instill a love of literature and the written word in the child. Math skills, however, may not get similar attention in the formative years. As a result, helping children with elementary math may be a challenge. You'll need to make activities fun and demonstrate real-word applications for basic math operations.

Things You'll Need

• diligence
• patience
• persistence

Instructions

1. Relate mathematics to subjects the children are passionate about. For instance, if students are into soccer, incorporate soccer scores into the math lesson. If they enjoy biking, focus on distance measurements. Use a jump rope to teach how to count by twos.

2. Incorporate math into your vocabulary and daily conversations. Making math part of your conversations will demonstrate that it's part of life and take some of the "work" aspect out of it. Point out how math is needed to understand how to double a recipe or determine the square footage of a tree house.

3. Teach them math without them knowing. It doesn't have to be a lesson. Make math part of their games. Count the number of times they go down the slide. Ask them to estimate the number of fish in a pond. Have them group things (division). Have them count by twos, threes or fours (multiplication).

4. Teach math at meals. You can play addition and subtraction games with the peas. "I have 10 and I ate 4. Now how many do I have?" Have them estimate how many bites of dinner are left. Estimation and problem-solving skills are an important part of math for kids.

5. Quiz your kids about multiplication tables in the car, where you have a captive audience. Some parts of mathematics involve memorizing. The more times you ask your child the same question, the sooner he will have it committed to memory.

6. Use manipulative tools. Fingers, blocks, coins and anything that gives your child a visual on how math works all benefit the child. You can even create math equations, including variables with cups and rocks. For example, "4 rocks + rocks under the cup = 10 total rocks." Ask the child how many rocks are under the cup. The cup becomes a variable like "x" or "y."

Tips & Warnings

• Even if your child seems to struggle with math, keep at it. She'll get the concept with enough practice.

References

• Math.com; Doing Mathematics with Your Child; Martin D. Hartog et al.
• Teaching Science and Math; 10 Elementary School Math Teaching Tips; David R. Wetzel