When Children Hates ‘Mental’ Math
Activities to make Math fun and less dreadful.
I know a boy who once said, “I hate math. It makes me mental!”
He made every excuse to avoid the class. I find it difficult to blame him as I’m not fond of math too. It was never my best subject despite all the extra classes.
For the love of God, I can never understand why I need to memorize all those tables and formulas. I felt it was pointless, especially when I can see a calculator inches away from me.
Now being grown up, I realized learning math helped me, especially during a store sale with all those tricky percentages. Or when I need to calculate a tip for the delivery guy/waiter.
How Could You Make Mathematics More Interesting?
I remember my math tuition teacher Ms. Kavita. One fine day, she brought a weighing machine to class. She asked the class to each take turns to weigh ourselves.
We wrote our weight on a piece of paper. Once we were done, she called out a sum of numbers and asked us to form groups using our weights.
It was so fun. We ran around trying to add/subtract our weights to reach the called-out figure. While having fun, we practiced math mentally. We giggled silly but learned math without knowing and simply by running around the classroom.
It still brings memories when I look back. That day changed how I felt about math. I realized math does not need to be ‘MENTAL’ or just a theory/numbers in textbooks.
Often children learn better when they get involved in their learning process. Even better if their lessons could be made practical and personalized. We know that each child approaches work or tasks differently.
Here are some considerations you can try to help children tackle the horror of learning Math.
Look for games that incorporate math.
Can children learn maths playing hopscotch? Can you incorporate their favorite trampoline or football matches with math?
Use their favorite toys or interest to link them with math.
Get children to learn measurements by sewing clothing for their toys. Or learning to read measurements in recipes by cooking together, going out to shop for groceries, or even build a toy rocket from scratch.
These activities allow children to apply textbook math to their favorite activities. There are even some online games that can be interesting to explore.
Use items from their surroundings. Make it practical.
Use nature — bricks/stones/sticks to learn about math. Show children how to tell time with shadows or use floor plans/furniture/garden sheds to learn geometry with a measuring tape.
Let children check out bus/train schedules to learn about distance and time. Allow children to use a GPS to learn about directions and distance.
Nature is often one of the best teachers available to children. The things we have around school or home surrounding can be learning tools to support children.
Keep math activities practical and fun. In no time, children who hate maths will find their rhythm in conquering their fear for math.
Thank you for reading.
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