Teaching Elementary Math Techniques

Video Transcript

"So, how does one teach elementary math techniques? Hi, I'm Jimmy Chang. I've been teaching college mathematics for nine years and here's some tips as to how to best learn math from an elementary up perspective. Now, first, it's always best to introduce real world terms. In other words, before you introduce the concept, think about an idea that will connect the student and get them hooked before introducing the math idea. The more students can relate to the real world applications of a certain concept, the more they'll be able to relate to it and the more enthusiastic they'll learn about it. Use as many visuals as you can whether it be on the board, color markers, you can use slides, you can use video clips. You can even use television as well as movies. They have some classic math examples, whether it be "Wizard of Oz," I've even seen "Die Hard With A Vengeance" being used as an example for mathematics. Manipulatives, the more hands on you can be with the students as possible, the better they'll be able to learn, because once they're working with something, they'll be able to see how math is actually used in the idea. I can't stress this next one enough, practice, practice, practice. The more they practice an idea, the more comfortable they'll be and the better they'll learn the ideas that you're trying to teach them from a math perspective. Have them self-check; have them check their answers. Not just looking in the back of a book, but look at their...have them check their problems from the beginning to the end to see if they missed anything. And, when they check themselves, they'll be able to learn from their mistakes and we always learn by making mistakes, believe it or not. And lastly, review, review, review. It's always difficult to go from one concept to the next, because there's a chance that they might actually forget the ideas they've just learned. Always make sure that they...you review the ideas that you learned from before so that they won't lose the idea. A lot of books have what called cumulative reviews, not just from section to section, but also chapters from previous parts of the course you'll be able to learn. So, with cumulative reviews, you get to learn not just the new material but also revisit the old material so that you can make sure that they have that still in their grasp. So, I'm Jimmy Chang and there are some techniques on learning math."