Helping Your Children with Math

• Talk to your children about the relevance of mathematics in our daily lives at home and at work.

• Provide learning opportunities in your home, allowing children to participate in activities that stimulate reasoning and problem solving.

• Ask your children to explain their thinking or justify their reasoning when solving problems or defending their view.

• Encourage your children to ask questions.

• Ensure that all expected homework is completed, providing support, assistance, and encouragement as needed and as appropriate.

• Ask your children to teach you what they learned in math class that day.

• Hold high expectations for your children in mathematics achievement.

Helping Your Child with Homework

A checklist for helping your child succeed

1) Show that you think education and homework are important.

□ Do you set a regular time every day for homework?

□ Does your child have papers, books, pencils, and other materials needed to do assignments?

□ Does your child have a fairly quiet place to study with a lot of light?

□ Do you stay in touch with your child’s teachers?

2) Monitor Assignments.

□ Do you know what your child’s homework assignments are?

□ Do you know how long they should take to complete?

□ Do you know how the teacher wants you to be involved?

□ Do you see assignments that are completed?

□ Do you read the teacher’s comments on assignments that are returned?

□ Is TV, video games, or the computer cutting into homework time?

3) Provide Guidance.

□ Do you understand and respect your child’s style of learning?

□ Does your child work better alone or with others?

□ Does your child learn best when he or she can see things, hear them, or handle them?

□ Do you help your child get organized?

□ Does your child need a calendar, assignment book, bag for books, or a folder for papers?

□ Do you encourage your child to develop good study habits (e.g., scheduling enough time for big assignments, making up review sheets)?

□ Do you talk to your child about homework assignments? Does your child understand them?

4) Talk with someone at school about your child’s education.

□ Do you meet the teacher early in the year before any problems arise?

□ Is a problem does arise, do you meet with the teacher?

□ Do you cooperate with the teacher and your child to work out a plan and schedule for completing homework?

□ Do you follow up with the teacher and with your child to make sure the plan is working?