Thanks to COVID-19, millions of children are adapting to the reality of exclusively virtual instruction. Moving from classrooms to home and from chalkboards to Zoom meetings, students are adjusting in real- time to how they receive academic information. If your child struggles in math in the classroom setting, they may be anxious about how they will learn new math concepts online. We offer 5 steps to help your child ace their virtual math instruction.
Before school begins, choose an area in your home to serve as your child’s virtual classroom. Whether in the spare office or at the kitchen table, pick an area with minimal foot traffic and noise that allows your child to focus. Achieving this may be easier said than done with parents transitioning to working from home full-time. However, it is important to try to minimize their distractions.
Choose an area with a comfortable table or desk and chair since your child will be sitting for an extended period. Try to avoid using their bedroom. You want to avoid the temptation of an afternoon nap during class time.
Quarantine life has made it easy to get off schedule, but it’s still important to establish a daily routine with your child. Outside of class instruction, try to match their downtime to their previous in-school schedule to maintain as much consistency as possible. For example, if your child had a morning break around 10:30 am daily at school, allow your child to break at that same time at home
Monitor television and phone screen time during the day to guard against overuse. You don’t want your child picking up their cellphone every five minutes unless it is required for their lesson. Designate a “home” for cellphones and electronic devices while class is in session. Taking breaks is vital during the day, but make sure too much liberty isn’t taken. Set boundaries for acceptable free time activities that don’t always involve additional time on a device.
Your child may feel overwhelmed with all their learning instruction being crammed into their day in front of their computer. Prioritizing organization may help alleviate some anxiety. You can create order by simply arranging each subject's assignment into a separate folder or creating a checklist at the end of each day to help your child track their assignments. Whether it's their backpack or their favorite folder, assign a place for your child to keep each day's assignments separate from the living space.
Take some time at the end of each week to talk with your child about their learning experience:
This is also a good time to brainstorm and set goals for the following week in case any upcoming special projects require additional preparation or supplies. Looking ahead and planning can ease anxiety by helping your child find security in knowing what’s coming next.
Even if math is not your child's strongest subject, there is at least one topic or concept that piques their interest. Do they take more of an interest in the module on multiplication tables? Are they drawn to activities that involve counting money? When discussing each week's math focus, listen for what excites them during instruction and brainstorm simple ways to practically reinforce what they learn.
For example, during the next grocery pick-up, ask your child to review and discuss the cost and weight of each grocery item or allow them in the kitchen to help you measure the necessary ingredients for their favorite recipe. Walk them through how you pay a bill online or create the family budget to help them connect the dots from their math lessons to the real world.
Integrating these practices will provide your child with stepping stones to take their virtual math skills to the next level. Our Mathnasium centers are happy to assist in supporting your child’s math education needs. We offer in-person and online math coaching for grades 2 through 12 that is tailored to each individual child.
Mathnasium@home is our new program where we bring the Mathnasium center and the Mathnasium Method™ to you! Through Mathnasium@home we offer live math instruction to students from home. This is included in your Mathnasium membership at no additional cost. Give us a call or send us an email for more information regarding our in-person and online services.
