How to Tackle a Word Problem

I hope everyone enjoyed Super Bowl Sunday!  Mine was filled with lots of sugary and salty snacks and a not so happy hubby.

Here are some steps to make sure tackling a word problem is not quite as painful as getting tackled by a football player!

Math Fact Friday: 3 Card Games

My students’ favorite Math Fact Fridays are always when we get to play games.  Any time I see playing cards (especially themed) in the Target “1-spot”, I buy them.  Something about that 1-spot has me addicted! (See what I do with the file folders here!)  I’ve also found plain playing cards and a set of six dice there!  I now have Hello Kitty, Cars, and plain playing cards.

Playing cards are easy resources for math games because they are so cheap and versatile.  You can write the directions on the board or print a hand out for each student to keep in their binder.  These math games can be used as a warm-up, a treat for the end of the day on Friday (which is what I usually did), or a station. 

4 Tips to Finish Your Math Homework Faster

Most students dread the time they have to spend to do their math homework.  What if I told you there are strategies you can follow to finish your homework in almost half the time?  If you follow these 4 strategies, you may be able to finish all of your homework at school and have the whole afternoon to yourself!!

Math Fact Friday: Khan Academy

 If you would like to know more about why I do Math Fact Friday, please see my first post on it here.

Another great resource for Math Fact Friday is Khan Academy.  When I was in the classroom, I had a class set of netbooks and headphones (very important!) I could use and had students practice their Khan Academy for 5-10 minutes for Math Fact Friday.  It was great because students could practice lessons at THEIR LEVEL.  It was the definition of differentiation in the math class.  Khan Academy has practice lessons from basic adding all the way through calculus.  It also has videos and hints to help struggling students.  As a teacher it was great because from my teacher account I could see what the students were working on and how many problems they got right or wrong.  When I used Khan Academy for Math Fact Friday, I would let students choose any lesson they wanted to work on or math video they wanted to watch.  This fosters a curiosity about math for students instead of a fear of hard math.  You’ll notice the less confident students working on extremely easy problems, which in turn helps build their confidence.  You’ll also see confident students attempting calculus problems when they are in Algebra 1! 

How to Calculate Your Grade

In my last post I taught you How to Calculate Your GPA, in this post, I will be teaching you how to calculate your grade.  Grades are MUCH more complicated than GPA.  So if finding your GPA was hard for you, you might just want to ask your teacher or find out if your grade is posted online.

How to Calculate GPA

I hope everyone had a great Christmas!!  I spent last week hanging out with my family and enjoying some time off.  We went for a beautiful hike on the beach, ate more food than I should have eaten, and just sat and talked about our lives.

With school coming back in session, some of you are starting to wonder about your grades.  Some schools just finished their fall semester, and some have midterms or finals coming up.  Today I’m going to help you find your GPA.

Student Resource Page Updated!!

Check out the new student resource page at Alpha Delta Academy.  There are a ton of useful resources to math students including math games, practice exercises, and videos!  Follow this link to check it out.

How to Get Your Teacher to Reply to Your Email

Emailing a teacher should always be your last resort.  It shows much more respect to approach the teacher in person at school during their office hours if you have a question.  However, sometimes an email is necessary.  Follow these steps to be sure that your email is read and even replied to.

Math Fact Friday: Dad’s Worksheets

When I taught sixth grade math last year, I noticed a common denominator (no pun intended) between the students that were struggling.  None of them knew their math facts. 

Now I am a very conceptual teacher; however, once students understand HOW to add, subtract, multiply, and divide, they need to know how to do it quickly.  This usually involves little to no conceptual teaching which is why, I think, it has been forgotten by many teachers recently during the latest education fad.  Students have to have their math facts memorized.  It leads to more confidence, less time doing homework, and over all more success in math. 

This is why I instituted “Math Fact Fridays”.  At the start of the year, two of my sixth graders were at a 4^th grade level in math, right before spring break, they were right on grade level.  I think a HUGE part of their success was Math Fact Fridays. 

This year I have started exclusively tutoring.  The students that are struggling in their classes don’t know their math facts.  Before I help them with their topics they are coving in class, I always have them learn their math facts.  The biggest improvement I have seen is by an in-depth review on math facts.

I’m going to be sharing resources I used with my sixth graders last year and those that I use with my tutoring students currently.  I hope you see as much success in your students with these resources as I have!

How NOT to Ask Your Math Teacher for Extra Credit

How many times have you thought, “I could really use some extra credit before my test/progress report/final/report card”?  If the answer is more than once, read on to find out how NOT to ask for extra credit.

Being a math teacher, I often had students ask me for extra credit.  Sometimes I would allow it, but usually I would deny it because of one of the following reasons.

What Do You Do When You Don’t Know What to Do?

Step 1: Cry

Step 2: Give up

Step 3: Move on

This is the three-step process many students go through when they get stuck on a math homework assignment, test, or project.  Not only is this process not effective, it is counter productive.  It fosters a fear and hatred of math and leads to more future frustrations.  Below I have the PRODUCTIVE and EFFECTIVE three-step method that I teach to my students.

How to Ace Your Math Homework

Math teachers often experience students asking for extra credit right before grades are due.  This is one of the biggest mistakes you can make as a student.  Avoid making this huge error by accumulating as many points through assigned work before finals.

How to Study for a Math Test

As midterms and finals are rearing up their fiery heads all over the nation, students everywhere are dreading their math tests.  For many of these students it may be too late, but not for you!  Here are our tips on how to study for a math test.