One of the most fun times to learn and play with math with your kids is in the preschool years. They are usually so excited and curious and love to explore new things. So if you're excited to help prepare your Pre-K kiddo for Kindergarten and provide a really solid math foundation, read on! I share some of the basics of what preschool math should cover, plus include all my favorite resources for Pre-K Math Activities (hint: it doesn't involve Keep Reading...
Top 5 Essential Math Manipulatives
There are so many gadgets, toys and manipulatives out there that seem to make math more hands-on and fun, but as a homeschool mom on a tight budget it might seem overwhelming and expensive! Are all those tools necessary? There are certainly uses for many different tools out there, but here are my top 5 necessary homeschool math manipulatives. You may think this list is small, or that surely you need more than this to adequately teach math, but I Keep Reading...
The Great Debate: The Role of Calculators in Math Education
The great debate over calculator use in the math classroom, particularly in elementary school, will probably never be resolved. There are those who say there is no place for calculators in the classroom, whether elementary or high school. Then there are those who say that “mental math” is no longer necessary. That we live in an age of technology and memorizing multiplication facts or working math out with pencil and paper has become obsolete and Keep Reading...
Skittles Count and Compare! {FREE Printable Pack}
As kids begin to learn their numbers and count and understand cardinality (the number of items in a set), they will then be able to compare things. This becomes evident early on if you have more than one child, because they are quick to notice if brother or sister "has more than me!" While serving as referee in those sibling squabbles over more or less is not fun, this is an important math concept to master! And it starts with hands-on visuals Keep Reading...
Creating Patterns With Skittles {FREE Printable!}
As I mentioned earlier this week, teaching kids to explore, recognize and use patterns is an essential part of math education. While students will eventually learn to recognize patterns with numbers and tables and graphs, it's important to start early with basic shapes and colors! And as I've mentioned before, what's more fun than learning math with Skittles? :) My kids had so much fun with these Skittles Pattern Cards, and even got busy coming Keep Reading...
Weekly Math Freebie Round Up!
Welcome to the weekly round up of FREE math teaching resources here at Math Geek Mama! I love finding fun, high quality teaching materials for you so that you can teach with confidence without breaking the bank! Check back each week for more freebies, or subscribe to my email newsletter and never miss out on anything! :) Kindergarten-2nd: This acorn math game is a great, hands-on way to let kids practice counting and number recognition! Keep Reading...
“We’re Going on a Leaf Hunt!” Fall Exploration Activity
I can't believe it is already October! It seems like Fall came in with a bang this year, and we were suddenly facing cooler temps and beautiful Fall foliage. But I'm ok with that! The kids and I are having so much fun getting outside and exploring now that it's not so hot (when it's not pouring down rain, that is)! :) I recently came across the book, We're Going on a Leaf Hunt by Steve Metzger and knew right away we would have to go explore Keep Reading...
{FREE} Candy Corn Number Puzzles!
Currently, I homeschool my older two kids (ages 5 and 6). I have discovered lately, however, that if I let my 4 year old join us for school, my son is much more willing to participate and do his school work too. And while my daughter is super excited and wants to do school with her siblings, I’m not a preschool teacher, and I don’t have many ideas or materials to use to engage her and keep her busy while I work with the others. So I decided to Keep Reading...
5 Things You Should Never Say to the Child Who Struggles with Math
It can often be hard and frustrating trying to teach a child who struggles with math. No matter what you do or how you teach a concept, they just seem to fight to grasp the concepts. I know that in those moments it can be easy to lose patience, or join them in their frustrations, but in the long run, saying the following when they are frustrated or struggling will not help them. Here are some common things you should never say to the child who Keep Reading...
Disney Math: Using Pattern Blocks to Create Cinderella’s Castle!
If you haven't seen on Instagram, my family is counting down the days to our Disney World vacation! This is our first time, and my kids are just a little bit excited. ;) To help use their excitement to learn and explore important math concepts, we've been having a "Disney Math" lesson each week! (If you missed last week, check out our math countdown to Disney!). This week, to build on our triangles lesson from "The Greedy Triangle," we pulled Keep Reading...
