Developing math strategies can help your student learn to think for themselves

“According to international standardized tests, American students lack math aptitude and problem solving skills” says Raj Shah, owner of Math Monkey of Powell. “This is due in part because we tend to just teach kids how to execute a solution instead of encouraging the student think for themselves. Here is a typical example: The teacher shows a problem and then demonstrates the solution, while students follow along. Next, the students practice a couple similar problems, using the same solution, followed by homework to reinforce it. What’s missing, according to Shah, is the opportunity to use and build their own critical thinking and problem solving skills first before providing “the solution”. This makes them poor problem solvers.”.

Games in Class Bring a D to a B

Teachers Use Games To Increase Math Grades. Last fall, Woodlawn Elementary’s math teachers locked up their textbooks in a music room closet. Faced with FCAT scores that figured in the school’s D grade in 2007-08, the teachers decided to get radical and overhaul their math curriculum. It paid off. The school went from a D to a B this year, logging impressive gains on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, especially in math.