LEARN MATH BASIC

You may have noticed that we are talking about "mathematics" -- the subject that incorporates numbers, shapes, patterns, estimation, and measurement, and the concepts that relate to them. You probably remember studying "arithmetic" -- adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing -- when you were in primary school. Now, children are starting right away to learn about the broad ideas associated with math, including problem solving, communicating mathematically, and reasoning.

Teachers are nursery schools are building bar graphs of birthday cakes to show which month has the most birthdays for the most children in the class. Pizzas or cakes can be used to learn fractions, and measurements can be taken using items other than rulers.

What Does It Mean To

* Be a Problem Solver,

* Communicate Mathematically, and

* Demonstrate Reasoning Ability?

A problem solver is someone who questions, investigates, and explores solutions to problems; demonstrates the ability to stick with a problem for days, if necessary, to find a workable solution; uses different strategies to arrive at an answer; considers many different answers as possibilities; and applies math to everyday situations and uses it successfully.

To communicate mathematically means to use words or mathematical symbols to explain real life; to talk about how you arrived at an answer; to listen to others' ways of thinking and perhaps alter their thinking; to use pictures to explain something; to write about math, not just give an answer.

To demonstrate reasoning ability is to justify and explain one's thinking about math; to think logically and be able to explain similarities and differences about things and make choices based on those differences; and to think about relationships between things and talk about them.


How Do I Use this Book?

This book is divided into introductory material that explains the basic principles behind the current approach to math, and sections on activities you can do with your children. The activities take place in three locations: the home, the supermarket, and in transit.

The activities are arranged at increasingly harder levels of difficulty. The ones you choose and the level of difficulty really depend on your child's ability. If your child seems ready, you might want to go straight to the most difficult ones.

Each activity page contains the answer or a simple explanation of the mathematical concept behind the activity so that you can explain when your child asks, "Why are we doing this?"

With these few signs to follow along the way, your math journey begins.