Mathing Matters: Back 2 School

The school year is here! My oldest daughter started kindergarten yesterday so summer for our family is already over. Fortunately, like most kindergartners she will most likely not have any math issues this school year. However, for those in 2nd – 12th grades, math builds upon itself each week, so starting the year with a solid math foundation is essential to successfully learning new concepts as the year progresses. Is your child ready to face new math concepts head on? Maybe he or she is in need of an extra challenge. Ensuring your child's math skills are ready-to-go is incredibly important for a happy and successful school year.

Start by having a conversation with your child. Discuss his or her performance in math during the previous academic year and crystallize concrete, measurable goals for the year ahead. During this conversation, get a sense of your child's attitude towards math and emphasize that a new school year is just the right time for a fresh start. Be positive, encouraging, and non-judgmental as you solidify this year's objectives together. 

Get a hold of your child's math textbook and syllabus and schedule a meeting with your child's math teacher a couple weeks after school starts. Your child's math teacher can provide quick insight into student behavior as well as performance. Also, take advantage of any Open House events at your child's school—these are a great opportunity to meet other parents as well as teachers and administrators and learn more about the school in general. 

Finally, if all signs point to your child needing outside help—whether for remediation or enrichment—come visit the neighborhood math experts on staff at Mathnasium! Every year, both parents and students tell me that they wish they received our expert math help sooner. We'll craft a personalized program for your child based on his or her own strengths and weaknesses, filling in the gaps in your child's math understanding while equipping him or her with the tools necessary to succeed in class. Day after day, we've seen our kids make amazing progress—school homework becomes easy, students get ahead in class, math struggles stop, and most of all, students understand the math they are doing. 

Getting any gaps filled in can be critical as some districts like Urbandale switch to a new math text this year district wide called Everyday Math. Please see my prior blog on Everyday Math that is now used by almost all schools on the west side of the metro. 

I'd like to wish you and your child a seamless transition through back-to-school season and best of luck for the year ahead!

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Dan Gehlbach is the owner and center director of Mathnasium – The Math Learning Center, located in West Des Moines and within the Waukee School District. Dan lives with his wife and 2 daughters in Urbandale. Year round, the center helps kids get caught up, keep up and get ahead while they develop confidence and a love for math. For more information call 440-MATH or consult the web site at www.mathnasium.com/westdesmoines.