Getting children of a young age to like anything, be it vegetables or different hobbies is always challenging. Mathematics, on the other hand, is full of numbers and confusing equations which can make the children grow distasteful towards it. However, no matter how much the children dislike the subject, it is one of the most essential parts of their academic as well as a non-academic journey into their future careers and goals. It is necessary that kids develop a strong foundation in a subject like mathematics from a very young age itself so as to have the option of later choosing to study it and its associated subjects. Mathematics itself is a very intrinsic and delicate language but it is also the basics of a lot of other subjects like accounting or physics in the higher classes. In order to be able to study these subjects later, students need to love and strengthen their mathematical roots.
Mathematics also helps them choose from a diverse range of careers like architecture or accounting or business. There is no realm of life where students of a young age won’t require the concepts of mathematics be it counting money or identifying shapes and figures or reading a calendar or counting the days of a month. Even the most basic day-to-day activities require the use of mathematics.
If your child does not take a liking to maths as a subject from as early as grade one, then it is time to switch approaches and try the methods given below to make them take interest in this subject of numbers and shapes.
-
Take the game-based approach
Puzzles, games, or apps can be a great method to get your child involved in mathematics. Children learn a lot faster through visual measures than they do through boring academic equations and textbooks. Puzzles or games that make them solve simple mathematical equations and then reward them with points can prove to be an effective way to encourage mathematical learning.
Games and quizzes help parents to encourage their children to learn maths without having to force the concepts down the child’s throats. It makes them enjoy what they are learning and also push them towards building a positive relationship with the subject.
-
Incorporate Mathematics into everyday life
Everyday situations that encourage the use of concepts of mathematics like identifying shapes and figures or counting steps or birds in the sky should be presented to the children. By doing basic tasks, parents can weave in the use of maths and push children to overcome the problem by using basic mathematical concepts. This will imbibe the children with the importance of the subject and encourage them to use these concepts themselves in and outside the classroom.
-
Children imitate your attitude
Many parents themselves had an aversion towards mathematics during their school days ro even now and this can reflect on how to treat the subject in front of the children of the parents themselves show a dislike towards using and understanding mathematical concepts, then the children will also feel discouraged. It is important not to communicate or pass on the behaviour or the attitude of dislike towards your children if you were one of those students who hated maths during your high school days. Teaching them the importance of mathematics in a different profession or the profession they aspire to follow like a teacher or an architect can also help them get interested in maths. If the children see parents use the concepts of maths that they are familiar with in the parents day to day lives or their jobs, this can promote a positive feeling in the kids.
-
Engage in books that deal with maths
Fun books that showcase stories of children loving maths or books that are based on mathematical concepts or figures can be a great way of achieving interest in maths within your children. CBSE prescribed NCERT textbooks for class 1 also have fun illustrations that encourage visual guidance to numerical problems. Other such books can also be beneficial to students who have pictures. Learning through videos available on YouTube can be a very fun method to learn as the music and audio stimulate the children’s interest. CBSE Sample Question Papers for Class 1 Maths can be viewed if the students want to attempt to solve different questions if they get bored with their academic homework or textbooks.
-
Encourage problem-solving
While on grocery runs or when buying things with the children around, encourage children to use the concepts of mathematics like addition and subtraction to derive and estimate the cost and indulge them in the process of buying. Asking them to calculate the discount or the money saved or the price of multiple objects, such basic activities can help them to achieve their academic goals as well as interest them in the tasks they are performing. Another way to pique the interest of young students in the subject of mathematics is to give them their own pocket money to handle. Occasionally asking them to buy simple objects like eggs or milk and then using the concepts of saving can help them become interested in maths outside of their textbooks.
In conclusion, it is very hard to force children to learn something that they have already formed an aversion towards. But parents can follow some simple methods mentioned above and help their children not only pique interest in mathematics but also get invested enough in the subject so as to voluntarily want to study it and become better. Strengthening their foundations of the subject from as early as first grade can prove to be very beneficial for the parents while teaching their kids the subjects in the next classes. Children are very impressionable so it is also important to monitor our behavior towards the subject in front of them as they learn what they see. Mathematics is a very interesting subject and one which students of this age won’t regret having understood so well from the very beginning so parents are encouraged to work with their children to help improve their concentration on it.