A Message From Mr. Watts

“Using Math in Daily Life”

   We use math every day in many ways, from figuring out sales tax to batting averages. 
But to children, it sometime seems as if the only time math matters is for tests and homework. 
At school, we try to help students see the practical uses of math and you can reinforce this at home.

     Even if math wasn’t your best subject in school, look for opportunities to point out how useful
  math can be. Tell your children how you use math at home and at work.

     While everyone should have a good foundation in math basics like addition, subtraction,
  multiplication, and division, math also involves solving word problems, reasoning, seeing
  patterns, estimating and measuring.  Here are some ways you can help our children learn these
  skills.

• Emphasize math concepts.  When cutting up a pizza refer to the portions in terms of eighths, quarters, and halves.  Talk about time in terms children understand, like “It’s as long as a TV show…… around 30 minutes.” Indicate relationships by using terms like “more than,” “less than,” “longer than,” “above,” and “below.”
• Math games.  Practicing math with flash cards is a great learning tool!  But it’s more fun to play dominoes, dice chess and checkers. 
• Money and math.  An excellent way to get children interested in math concepts is to involve real money.
• Shopping by numbers.  Grocery shopping presents many ways to use math.
• Helping with homework.  Instead of simply pointing out wrong answers, suggest that your children check their answers using methods they were taught in school, or have them describe the steps they used to get their answers.  Often, re-reading the directions will help them see a math problem more clearly, as will drawing pictures or charts.  Estimating, which usually involves rounding off numbers, is an excellent way to simplify problems and determine if the answers are reasonable.  Remember that some problems have more than one correct answer.
• Math and reading.  For example, if you are reading Goldilocks and the Three Bears, you might ask, “If each bear decides to have two bowls of porridge instead of one, how many bowls will be on the table?”
• Calculators and computers.  Most experts agree that using calculators won’t make children overly dependent on them. On the contrary, children often become more excited about math when introduced to inexpensive calculators.