Bedtime Math

Most parents read to their children at bedtime, but why not consider bedtime math?  I recently came across a great article on Scholastic.com.  The writer, Laura Overdeck, challenges parents to incorporate math into their bedtime routines.  She didn’t suggest anything overly complicated, just a few word problems that will push your child to think critically and do some mental math.

For example, let ‘s say you just read a book about a mischeivious dog?  You could pose some questions about that dog to your child.

Overdeck suggested some questions like these:

Wee ones (counting on fingers): Hannah’s dog Harley eats pretty much anything.  If Harley eats 3 pens, 2 crayons, and 4 washable markers, how many writing implements does he eat?

Little kids: If Harley eats 24 pages of your math book, and 13 pages of your history book, how many pages does Harley eat?  Bonus:  How many more pages of math than history does he eat?

Big kids: You’ve just written an 80-page paper.  If Harley eats 1/4th of it, how many pages does he eat?  Bonus: What if he eats 1/5th of what’s left – how many pages do you still have?

I love the idea of bedtime math, because we do tend to neglect math in the evenings.  We should teach our children how math is applicable in any situation, even after our bedtime stories.

For the full article, click here.

Fun and Easy Math Games using a Deck of Cards

Often times children, and some adults, don’t associate FUN with math.  However, using something as simple as a deck of cards can really change a child’s point of view.  Today’s post is all about quick and dirty (because your kid won’t know he/she is doing fact practice) games you can play to drill math facts, do sorting activities, and even memory activities.  In the classroom, I often took out  a deck of cards to break up the time in class and get the kids fired up to learn.  At home, you can utilize these games at the end of  or during a homework session to bolster fact fluency.  This is especially useful if you have a kiddo that can’t sit for long periods of time because the element of competition is motivating.   Additionally, using 5 minute increments to “rest” and play a game of war can definitely refocus your child.  I am borrowing this link from another blog, but I used these same games with kids K-5th grades, just with modifications of course.  Check out the games here!  Enjoy a little math fun with your child tonight!!