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Math games then help a student to become fluent in their
method and try to convince each student, with varying results, that math is
fun.
For me, when I think of math help, I am trying to figure out
how I can teach students to help themselves because, on tests and in the real
world when math comes into play, students will be, often, on their own applying
the math skills they’ve learned.
Math games for kids and other fun math games may make
mathematics seem like something that isn’t applicable outside of a game or test
or classroom, which is why I try to motivate students about math by exposing
them to its real world applications.
I also make sure that students take away from my lessons the
fact that math answers aren’t the most important part of a problem. Online math
courses, in school math courses, math tutors, anyone who has a proper
understanding of mathematics realizes that it is the process of problem solving
that is the key takeaway from any math equation.
In order to encourage an understanding of the importance of
process, I stress above all else that students show their work when solving
math problems. Even when students are using math software to augment their
learning, I urge them to show their work on paper. When playing a math game,
they need to show their work. Kids math games are beneficial to learning but
not if they detract from the work showing habits that are the foundation of any
good mathematician.
My approach as a math tutor is to use math websites to solve
math problems as well as traditional math on paper worksheets for math
practice. Math for kids, I think, must be able to exist on both electronic and
paper platforms as the realities of the world in which students will apply
their math mandates flexibility and fluency in both mediums of math.
Be it 8th grade math or kindergarten math, I want
all students to be able to master math and learn math from all of its angles,
including its electronic one. Therefore, fun math games for kids are a valuable
part of the math tutoring experience that I provide.
To help with math, my first step is always getting to know
the student. Math homework help may seem to be straightforward, but the truth
is that each of us learn in different ways, so, to be a good math helper, I not
only help students find what methods work best for them I also find the best
way for explaining mathematics to each student based on their particular style
of learning.
A math teacher cannot always cater their lesson to everyone,
and so some students may feel left out or confused because the concepts are
being explained in a way that is contrary to how they are comfortable learning.
Math homework however is given out with the expectation that all students will
have relatively equal understandings of a lecture, but this is almost certainly
not the case for many students in a class.
When students feel left behind in this way, the concept of
fun math begins to sound like a complete impossibility, and students may stop
asking math questions as they fear that they are too far behind or are afraid
of sounding stupid or have given up on math.
One of my roles as a math tutor is to teach students like
this that a given math class’ math wizard is only the student who learns in the
same way that the teacher teaches. When I explain math to a student in a way
that makes sense to them, they will learn that they too can be a great and
mighty math wizard.
