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FAMILY MATH Classes

  • are offered by teachers, parents, retired persons, or community volunteers in a school, church, community center, or home

  • usually meet for an hour-and-a-half to two hours per session, once a week for four to six weeks

  • include algebra, logical thinking, number sense, geometry, probability and statistics, measurement, estimation, and other concepts covered throughout the preK–9 mathematics curriculum

  • are usually taught by grade levels (preK–2; 3–4; 5–6; 7–9), although many different combinations are used

  • give parents and children opportunities to develop problem-solving skills and to build an understanding of math concepts with hands-on materials
    1. Problem solving
      By problem-solving skills we mean ways in which people think about how to solve a problem. These include such strategies as looking for patterns, drawing a picture, working with a partner, or eliminating possibilities.

      Having a supply of strategies helps eliminate the frustration of not knowing how or where to begin solving a problem. Having more strategies increases confidence, improves willingness to tackle new problems, and results in better problem solvers.

    2. Hands-on
      By hands-on materials, we mean common household items such as blocks, beans, and toothpicks that are used to help learners picture and conceptualize problems.

  • provide parents with advocacy tools to support their children’s mathematics education

RESOURCES AVAILABLE

FAMILY MATH for Young Children: Comparing, grades PreK–3

FAMILY MATH II: Achieving Success in Mathematics, grades K–6

FAMILY MATH, grades K–8

FAMILY MATH—The Middle School Years, Algebraic Reasoning and Number Sense, grades 5–8

FAMILY MATH books provide activities with easy to follow instructions for families to do at home or in class as well. Complete plans on how to set up a FAMILY MATH class series are also included in each book.

Lawrence Hall of Science    © 2024 The Regents of the University of California    Contact EQUALS    Updated June 20, 2011