Teach Your Child Math This Summer

Summer vacation is a big block of time. If you're child is falling behind in math, or if you just want to make sure he maintains what he's learned through the year, these tips will help your child stay up on math, without feeling like he's stuck in summer school.

There are so many moments in an average day that lend themselves to learning about math. A simple trip to the grocery store, a ball game, or even hopscotch can help your child build his math skills. With the awareness of these teaching moments, you can maximize them, and even build upon them throughout the summer.

Wear a Watch:

No matter what your child's age, using a watch instantly gives him opportunities to practice adding, subtracting and doing basic computation. Let him wear a watch, and when something exciting is coming up, have him give you a countdown of how much time is left until it happens. Or using a stopwatch, have races and write down who has the best time. For older children, have the winner be determined by an average score.

Sports: For sports buffs, there are multiple ways to encourage learning. Make up a scoreboard of favorite teams, and compare stats. Talk about how batting averages are calculated, and try to calculate some of your own.

Cooking: Making pancakes on a Sunday morning can lead to learning about measurements, fractions, and multiplication. Start with a basic recipe, and then double or triple it, and allow your child to figure out how much of each ingredient is needed. For younger children, simply learning about basic measurements, such as teaspoon, tablespoon, cup, etc. is very helpful. For older children, you can teach fractions by finding out how much milk is needed if the recipe calls for ¼ cup and you need to triple the recipe.