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Read MoreMotivating Your Child to Study Math
We all struggle with motivating our children to focus on mathematics. Mathematical concepts don’t always come easily, and studying often requires children to sit still for longer than they would like.
These factors combined can lead to stubbornness in some young children. Rather than butting heads and surrounding math with a cloud of negativity, try these 5 approaches to motivate your child to study math:
1. Show them that math is everywhere. Developing your child’s interest in mathematics requires regular exposure to it. Incorporate math into daily routines, like measuring ingredients in the kitchen or calculating totals while shopping. Help your child see that math is more than calculations and rote memorization; make the subject come alive.
2. Timing is important. Don’t save your motivational speech for when your child fails to complete homework or is struggling with a math problem. Instead, talk to your child about math often. Regularly ask them about what they learned in math class in school that day.
3. Tone is crucial. Though your children may not always listen to the words you use, they will remember the tone of your voice. Many parents unwittingly pass on their own fears or negativity toward math this way. If you believe that math is important and you speak about it positively, you will pass on that positivity to your child.
4. Tie math to your child’s goals. Even very young children have ideas about who they want to be when they grow up. Help them see the importance of math by tying it to their goals. Whether they want to be in the arts, businesses, or the sciences, math is everywhere. Show them how it is a brick in the road of whatever it is they want to accomplish.
5. Find role models. Look around your community. Check out school alumni, see where they are today, and share their stories to your children. You may even encourage your child to reach out to them. A recent graduate could have attended the college that your child has their sights set on or achieved the career that your child dreams of. If they valued math and it got them to where they are, there’s no reason your child can’t follow the same path.
Whether one or all of these tips resonate with your child, it will undoubtedly allow them to approach math with a positive attitude.
This blog was originally published in 2016 and has since been updated.
