Homeschool math is the bane to my existence. The way students learn math now is different from when I went to school, and I am barely keeping up. There are so many different curriculums.
You have Singapore math and Saxon math and probably many other companies I do not know. The worst thing, they all teach the concepts differently. I know many of you feel the struggle, and I wanted to make sure I gave you some great ideas to help you with your math curriculum.
Making homeschool math easier
Here are some easy tips to help you make math easier in your home. It is a great idea to change things up and allow your children to learn differently, and here are four big changes you can make to your math block to help your children learn.
1 – Use math manipulatives and tools.
No matter what grade level your child is in, math manipulatives and tools are always very helpful. Having rulers, protractors, counting disks, fraction tiles, and other tools on hand can help with engagement and learning in the homeschool classroom. These tools can help you visually see math a little easier than just trying to draw it out or have them visualize it in their mind.
Even if you use printable worksheets or teaching textbooks for your homeschool curriculum, using manipulatives adds an element of fun. No matter your children’s ages, everyone loves to be able to move tools and manipulatives in math!
2 – Online Math
We are in the age of technology and we should use it to our advantage. There are so many online math programs, games, and homeschool math curriculums your children will love.
These interactive math programs such as the CTCMath online curriculum are a great addition to your homeschool. This curriculum gives you elementary, middle, and high school lessons, and you wouldn’t have to worry about planning another math lesson again. Plus it is a great price.
There are also a lot of free homeschool math websites to help your student practice their math lessons, such as Khan Academy and Prodigy.
Khan Academy is run more like a traditional learning platform, where there are video lessons and practice sheets. Prodigy transports the players into another world while still helping them learn.
3 – Themed Lessons and Usage of Units
It is always a great idea to have lessons all based around the same theme or to build a unit so your child can learn all of the skills associated with a topic at the same time. If your middle school student needs to know about proportions, make sure all the skills that go along with proportions are taught. If you have a younger student creating math united which are themed based.
The Relaxed Homeschool has three pages full of math resources to help supplement or create your curriculum. You will find winter-themed, farm-themed, and even some holiday-themed resources for your little learners. If you are looking for some upper elementary units, we have fractions, order of operations, and more!
Having already put together packs and math resources help take the planning pressure off of you and allows you to dive into the material to help your child when they need you.
4 – Real world math
Get your child excited about math using real world examples, problems, and projects. Turn your kitchen into a grocery store to help with adding decimals or figuring out percentages.
Set up a bowling alley in your living room to help your 1st grader work on addition. You can even incorporate some world history and discuss the pyramids or the Great Wall of China in some real world math projects.
There are so many possibilities that allow your child to get real world experiences while also working on their math skills. Plus, they probably won’t even notice they are learning or practicing!
Make homeschool math memorable
These four changes will improve your math block and get even the unmotivated math learner excited about their math lesson. Remember to figure out precisely what type of math resources or programs will work best for your child and take full advantage of online and printable options. It is always amazing what you can buy or find with a simple Google search!
Want to grab some of the math resources discussed in this article?
