Louise Iliana February 27, 2021 worksheets
2. Math worksheets don’t promote critical thinking. Math worksheets rarely ask students to think critically or creatively. They usually present multiple examples of the same problem type with the hope of reinforcing a skill or procedure. They do not challenge students to use higher order thinking skills such as comparing, analyzing, deducing, and synthesizing. These skills are built through activities in which students discover concepts, explore ideas, test a hypothesis, solve a problem, and discuss their thinking with their peers. Exploring concepts and problems in many different ways builds interest and promotes critical thinking. 3. Math worksheets don’t promote communication and collaboration. Math worksheets are often assigned as an independent activity, however research indicates that communication and discourse are needed to build a deep understanding of math topics. Students need opportunities to explore mathematical ideas in different ways and to build their own connections. This involves communicating their ideas, listening to the ideas of others, arguing a viewpoint, describing, and explaining. Math worksheets are rarely used as a catalyst for conversation. Instead of assigning worksheets, find activities that encourage discourse, such as ”number talks,” or collaborative group work. During the session, be sure to require students to explain their thinking and listen to the strategies and thinking of their peers. If you are fortunate enough to have an interactive whiteboard in your classroom, using it with interactive math software creates many opportunities for group discussion and student participation. Teachers can can begin by posing problems and modeling approaches, and then ask students to work together to find solutions. Then have them come to the board to demonstrate their solutions in front of the class. These days, many examples of how to teach math concepts on an interactive whiteboard can be found online in the various whiteboard community sites, educational sites, YouTube, etc.
Another problem with almost all worksheets is that they don’t prevent incorrect answers. Self-checking worksheets just let the student know they did something wrong–after the fact. I am a firm believer in the concept that, if at all possible, learning should be structured in small chunks in such a way that there is very little possibility for error. Worksheets often allow for mistakes to be made and then to be repeated many times. A mistake that gets practiced is extremely difficult to correct. This especially happens when worksheets are used as time fillers or baby sitters and the work isn’t really being supervised. There are some new materials being developed now based on what we are learning about how the brain learns. These brain-friendly materials should be an improvement over what has existed. I recently bought a book by Marcia L. Tate titled ”Mathematics Worksheets Don’t Grow Dendrites.” I highly recommend her book. She gives a great deal of information on alternative activities that are better for your child’s brain development and for learning.
If you are looking for printable worksheets for your preschool child, the array of choices can be a little intimidating. You may just be looking for a few pages to keep your child occupied with something more constructive than yet another half hour in front of the TV, or you may feel it’s time you started helping your child learn the basic skills she or he will need for school. Whatever your motivation for looking for worksheets for preschool, there are a few points to consider before you decide which ones you want. 1. Education vs Time Filler. If your goal is to provide learning opportunities for your child, you will want more than a few pictures to color in, although this is an important skill to practice. Between the ages of 3 and 7, the so-called formative years, your child is ready and willing to learn. This is a great time to start introducing the basic skills that your child will use for the rest of their lives such as counting, reading and writing. With your help and supervision, your child can do math worksheets, alphabet worksheets and much more. If education is your goal, you may want a set of worksheets designed to teach your child all of the basic skills they will need for school.
Rather than using worksheets, a better method is to use individual size white boards and have the child writing entire facts many times. Having a child writing 9 x 7 = 7 x 9 = 63 while saying ”nine times seven is the same as seven times nine and is equal to sixty-three” is many times more successful than a worksheet with 9 x 7 = ___ and the student just thinks the answer once and then writes that answer on the duplicate problems. I will admit that there is one type of worksheet that I used in the past and found relatively beneficial, although it had a different kind of flaw. For my Basic Math, Pre-Algebra, and Algebra classes, I had several books of ”self-checking” worksheets. These worksheets had puns or puzzle questions at the top, and as the students worked the problems they were given some kind of code for choosing a letter to match that answer. If they worked the problems correctly, the letters eventually answered the pun or riddle. Students enjoyed these worksheets, but there are a couple problem areas even with these worksheets. Some students would get the answer to the riddle early and then work backward from letter to problem answer, so they weren’t learning or practicing anything.
Tip #1 – Age Appropriateness. Multiplication worksheets are easy to find on the internet but before you start printing everything you find, you need to consult your child’s grade level math book or purchase a good scope and sequence book. A scope and sequence book will tell you what your child should be doing in math according to age and grade level. This book is a handy reference to always have on hand so you can be sure your child is staying on track. A good scope and sequence book will break down math into each area and you’ll know what your child needs to accomplish for that school year. Use this book as a guide as to which multiplication worksheets you should print off. If your child is just beginning to multiply multi-digit problems without carrying, don’t make the mistake of giving her worksheets that have carrying. It will most likely throw your child for a loop and she will become upset.
Even the youngest students–kindergarteners–will benefit from printable worksheets. They will help your little one learn and master basic concepts in way that will capture and hold their attention. Remember that small kids enjoy doing things rather than simply reading or listening. For this reason, attractive, well-illustrated worksheets with something to do will make learning fun for them. What’s more, completing your worksheet will give the child a tremendous sense of fulfillment. Remember to select worksheets that are the right level difficulty for your child. Get something too hard, and your child will become discouraged. Make it too easy, and they won’t learn much. Homeschool worksheets are far more than busy work. They are an important part of making sure that the concepts you teach in your home school stick with your child. Just make sure you have a good source for providing the worksheets, and that they’re the right ones for your kid or kids.
Recent Post
Categories
Archive
Most Popular
Tag Cloud
grade 4 math test papers free math games for kids 1st grade word problems math workbooks should i get a math tutor solving and graphing inequalities worksheet the most complicated math problem christmas values worksheet test question generator money worksheets grade 1 solving for unknown variables worksheets free printable math games for 1st grade 10th grade school mathematics grade 10 november 2015 division workbook math reference i need help with math word problems for freeLatest Review
Latest News
Recent Post
Terms of UsePrivacy PolicyCookie PolicyContactCopyrightAbout
© 2021 Onedayinsandiego. All rights reserved.