Mt. Tabor Elementary School

Basic Skills Math

The Basic Skills Math Program at Mount Tabor School helps students develop foundational math skills necessary for academic success. As the math specialist, I support students who benefit from additional instruction to develop and strengthen their understanding of mathematical concepts. I also work cooperatively with the classroom teachers to provide support and resources that benefit the learning of all students. If you have any questions about the program or your child’s success or struggles with math, please reach out and let me know. I enjoy helping in any way possible.

Mrs. Scott

Ideas to Support Math at Home

Thinking Games Build Math Skills

Math involves a specific way of thinking. You can use games to help your child build the thinking skills needed to be successful with math. Here are some ideas:

• Help your child see patterns. For example, ask your child to use a rule to find the next number in these series.

o 10, 11, 13, 16, 20, 25, ________ (The correct answer is 31. The rule is add 1, then add 2, then add 3, and so on.)

o 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, ________ (The correct answer is 64. The rule is multiply the previous term by 2 or double the previous term)

o 12, 21, 34, 43, 56, _______ (Correct answer is 65. The rule is reverse the digits)

o Have fun making up some of your own or having your child make up some for you to solve!

• Use math to crack a code.
o In the code below, each letter begins with a numerical value (A=1,

B=2, C=3, ...Z=26). Then, each letter’s value is multiplied by 5, giving it a new value. (A=5, B=10, C=15...Z=130) Using this code, see if you and your child can figure out the following message:

§ 65-5-100-40 45-95 30-105-70! (Answer: Math is fun!) o Try making up your own math code with your child.

Teach Math Skills with Card Games

Card Games are not only fun-they help strengthen math skills. Here are a couple of ideas:

o Multiplication War-Play with a regular deck of playing cards, number cards and aces only (remove Jacks, Queens and Kings). The ace will be worth 1. Deal the cards equally to both players and keep them in a face down pile. Simultaneously turn over the top card and multiply them together. The first player to correctly call out the product wins the cards. Play continues until one player has collected all the cards.

o Tens Go Fish-Play with a regular deck of playing cards, numbers 2-9 and aces only (remove tens, Jacks, Queens and Kings) The ace will be worth 1. Each player is dealt 6 cards. The object of the game is to make as many tens facts as possible (Matches are 1 +9, 2+8, 3+7, 4+6 and 5+5). Each player takes turns asking for cards to make a ten fact. For example, if you have an 8 in your hand you will ask another player for a 2 because 8 and 2 make 10. If the person has the card, they will give it to you and you put down your ten fact. If the person does not have the card they will tell you to “go fish”. Play continues until all cards have been matched. The winner is the person who has made the most ten fact pairs.

Make Connections Between Sports and Math

Some students may begin to develop more of an interest in math once they see its importance in sports. As you’re watching a sporting event with your child, encourage him or her to keep stats. For example,

• What fraction of passes did the quarterback complete in the first quarter (number of completed/number of attempts)

• What fraction of three point shots did your favorite team make? (number of shots made/number of shots taken)

• If a pitcher throws a ball at 90 miles per hour, how many feet does the pitch travel in one second?
  90 mph x 5,280 feet per mile ÷60 minutes per hour ÷60 seconds per minute

  Some Math Websites to Explore