Help for the hard parts of math at home
Plain, practical help for learning at home, from a classroom teacher and a software engineer. No filler, no jargon, and real things you can try tonight.
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Screen time that is actually productive: how to tell a learning app from a slot machine
Not all screen time is equal. I build these apps for a living. Here are the design tricks that tell you whether an app is teaching your kid or just farming their attention.
Multiplication facts that finally stick (without flashcard misery)
Flashcard marathons make kids hate multiplication and still do not work. Here is the order I teach the facts in, and the ten minute routine that makes them stick.
How to help a child who is struggling with math
When a kid decides they are bad at math, the fix is almost never more of the same worksheet. Here is the triage I use in the classroom, step by step.
Estimation: Teaching Kids to Know When an Answer Is Ridiculous
A kid wrote that 4 times 6 was 240 and didn't blink. Estimation is the skill that would've caught it. Here's how I taught kids to smell a wrong answer.
Arrays and Area Models: The Picture That Ties Multiplication to Real Math
Kids who memorize times tables still freeze on word problems. Arrays and area models give multiplication a picture, and the picture is what makes it stick.
Introducing Coordinate Grids: Plotting Points Without the Panic
The first day of graphing usually ends in tears or blank stares. Here's how I taught the coordinate plane so kids stopped guessing which number goes first.
Multiplying by 10, 100, and 1000: The Pattern Behind the Zeros
Just add a zero works until your kid hits decimals, then it falls apart. Here is what is really happening when you multiply by ten.
Converting Fractions, Decimals, and Percents: One Idea, Three Costumes
Kids treat fractions, decimals, and percents as three separate subjects. They are one number in three outfits, and that changes everything.
Understanding Remainders: What Long Division Leftovers Actually Mean
Most kids can write R3 at the end of a division problem without any idea what it means. Here is how to make the leftover make sense.
Fractions on a Number Line: The Model That Ties It All Together
Pizza slices work until a kid has to compare two-thirds and three-fourths. A number line is the one model that carries fractions all the way up.
Order of Operations at Home: More Than Just PEMDAS
PEMDAS is a memory trick that quietly teaches two wrong ideas. Here is how to teach order of operations so it actually makes sense to your kid.
What Is Algebra Readiness in Elementary School, Really?
Algebra readiness has almost nothing to do with algebra. Here are the elementary skills that actually predict who thrives in eighth grade, and how to build them.
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