The Family Letter that is sent home at the beginning of each Unit also provides ideas for activities that match that Unit skill.
Everyday Computation - 1). Give your child a calculator when you go to the grocery store and see if they can accurately add up the groceries before taxes and see how close they are to the actual. For higher level students, get them to do this mentally using estimation with a pencil and paper just to jot down totals. 2). Turn off the TV and electronics and play strategy games with your child that involve computation. Dominoes, certain card games, dice games, etc.
How Did You Solve That? - Ask your child to tell you about how he or she is multiplying and dividing. Show that you are interested in these approaches. Because these strategies may be unfamiliar to you, listen carefully to your child's explanation; you might even try to do a problem or two, using a new procedure. Let your child be the teacher!
Modeling Division Situations - At school, students will be solving word problems that represent various types of division situations. Encourage your child to help you solve situations that come up in your daily activities. For example, while shopping you might ask, "If you can buy 2 pencils for 29 cents, about how many can you buy for $3.00?" or "I baked a batch of 136 muffins for a bake sale. I need to put them in bags of 5. How many bags can I fill with 5 muffins in each bag?"
Math and Literature - Here is a suggestion for a children's book that contains relevant mathematical ideas about multiplication and division. I Hate Mathematics! by Marilyn Bums
Estimating - Any time you need to estimate amounts at home, try to involve your child. Look for ways to count or estimate large numbers of things, like floor tiles, or windowpanes, or the number of cookies you'll need to make for a big party. Encourage your child to think of different ways to figure out about how many.
Everyday Computation - 1). Give your child a calculator when you go to the grocery store and see if they can accurately add up the groceries before taxes and see how close they are to the actual. For higher level students, get them to do this mentally using estimation with a pencil and paper just to jot down totals. 2). Turn off the TV and electronics and play strategy games with your child that involve computation. Dominoes, certain card games, dice games, etc.
How Did You Solve That? - Ask your child to tell you about how he or she is multiplying and dividing. Show that you are interested in these approaches. Because these strategies may be unfamiliar to you, listen carefully to your child's explanation; you might even try to do a problem or two, using a new procedure. Let your child be the teacher!
Modeling Division Situations - At school, students will be solving word problems that represent various types of division situations. Encourage your child to help you solve situations that come up in your daily activities. For example, while shopping you might ask, "If you can buy 2 pencils for 29 cents, about how many can you buy for $3.00?" or "I baked a batch of 136 muffins for a bake sale. I need to put them in bags of 5. How many bags can I fill with 5 muffins in each bag?"
Math and Literature - Here is a suggestion for a children's book that contains relevant mathematical ideas about multiplication and division. I Hate Mathematics! by Marilyn Bums
Estimating - Any time you need to estimate amounts at home, try to involve your child. Look for ways to count or estimate large numbers of things, like floor tiles, or windowpanes, or the number of cookies you'll need to make for a big party. Encourage your child to think of different ways to figure out about how many.