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Better Students Blog

Saving Your Child One Lesson At A Time...

 "What is a good, easy math game I can play with my kids to teach them math concepts?"

I tutor kids a lot that need help with math.  The parents tell me their kids are not understanding what they are teaching in school.  I set some math problems in front of the kids and the kids panic a little.  I go over the questions with them.  Then I tell them we are going to play a math game.  The kids get excited. 

The deck of cards I found you can play anywhere and anytime.  This card game I have played with many of my students.  It is my favorite.  Everyone can relate to Go Fish.  You start with a full deck of card.  This is called Multiplication Fish.  Remove the Jokers.  Jacks=12, Queens=14, and Kings=16.  You get started dealing five cards.  The remaining card are placed face down in a deck, which is placed in the middle of the playing area.  The object of this game is for the players to collect pairs of card with the same number (value0 on them.  They will search for the card with the numbers that match numbers they already hold in their own hands.  If any player gets a matched set of cards along five cards dealt at the start of the game that player places the matched cards down on the table in front of themselves.

Players take turns as they ask another player if she or he has a certain card in their hand. If the player asks "Do you have any 2 x5s?" to a player who has a 10 in his hand, that player must give up his 10 to the player who asked the questions.  The player who asked the question now has a pair of 10s.  She puts them doen in front of herself.

If a player does not have the number asked for, she says "Fish" and the player asking the question takes a card from the top of the deck.  If that cartd results in a match, he puts down the matched set in front of himself.  If there is no match, he keeps the card in his hand and the next player takes a turn.

Players count their pairs.  The player with the most pairs is the winner.

" How can games teach my kids to learn?"

 Learning is a lifelong process.  We should always be learning.  We can learn different ways.  We do not need to just learn one way.  Learning just in a classroom and with just books or worksheets can keep a student from growing in their learning.  What I am really saying is think "out of the box".  I am NOT saying to just do learning games.  When I teach children I have them work on curriculum first. 

I have a couple of ideas you can teach your children to read better.  To start with you can cook with your kids.  They can read the recipes to you. Or you can extend the activity and you can write a family recipe book together.  Each family member can write their own recipe.  Your family can create a keepsake treasure for you family.  At the same time you have created learning time for the children. Secondly, set aside reading and writing time each week together.  Read together, or individually.  Share your writing.  Make it a family night.  Make a special chair to sit in while your children are reading their masterpiece aloud.  Discuss the writing together.  Discuss the books you read.

I use math games to teach math sometimes.  I use a deck of cards, bag of candy or some dominoes.    I play go fish with the younger children.  The Go Fish game helps reconize numbers for younger children.  I use candy math for children.  You have a bag of candy.  The younger children can separate the colors of the candy.  They can count how many red candies their are compare to green pieces of candy there are.  You can make a simple addition problem for them.  They can understand the concept of adding.   I use dominoes for counting.  The children count the dots and learn to add and count.  Whoever gets to 50 points first wins the domino game.  The dominoes can be used for helping to learn with picking out patterns for young children. 

After the games are done the kids can feel refreshed and get back to the repetitive work in their books and curriculum and feel refreshed a little. 

Better Students Tip: Take a break, teach "out of the box" and play a game.

 "Will my children be affected in school if they don't eat breakfast?" 

When children eat breakfast, they can perform better at school.  If they don't, they have symptoms of fatigue, muscle weakness, headaches, and sleepiness.  The mental problems that will affect the children are anxiety, nervousness, anger, fidgety, hostility, indecisiveness, confusion, and unhappiness.  Those symptoms translates in the children not being able to do well on tests.  Also, not eating breakfast can actually affect the child in becoming overweight.  When the child misses a meal, especially the first meal, then the child feels hungrier and wants to overeat at lunch and dinner time.  Alternatively, the child may just want to snack all day.

I tutor some children that have not eaten a breakfast.  I see my own children that do eat breakfast.  There is a big difference. When I tutor children, I ask them if they have eaten breakfast.  When they tell me they have not. I could already knew it as they look exhausted, stressed, hungry, and fidgety.  Sometimes, I bring them an apple or a snack so we can have a focused tutoring session. 

When children are fed their breakfast in the morning these things improve.

• improved attention in late morning task performance
• quicker and more accurate retrieval of information (i.e. working memory)
• fewer errors made in problem solving activities
• better concentration and ability to perform complex tasks

Also, having meals together with your family improves the test scores.  By eating breakfast and spending time with your family both at once will double the chance of the child have a less chance of failing. 

I have heard many parents and children telling me they do not have time for breakfast, or they do not like to eat breakfast.  Those are the biggest two excuses I have heard.  No time for breakfast?  Then, grab an apple on the way out the door, or a convenient granola bar.  You can get up earlier and schedule time to have breakfast together.  The parents just need to be the models for the children and fix breakfast for the children, or the need parents to be role models for older children, and eat breakfast in front of them.  I think if you sit with the older children talk to them in the morning while you eat, they will grab something to eat also and talk with you. 

Better Students Tip: Eat breakfast before every school day.  Schedule a time to eat.  It is just like scheduling to watch a television show, but better for you.

"How do I help my child feel rested and ready to focus on their school work?"

During my tutor sessions, I see children falling asleep while at the table with me.  Just the opposite as well - they can not sit in their seat or sit still, not able to focus on what I am saying or what they are doing.    I have asked the children how late they stay up.   Some tell me they stay up all night on the weekend.  They never catch up on lost sleep on the weekends.  During the weekdays, the children are up until 10 PM and they get up for school by 6 AM.  That is only 8 hours.  Children need at least 10 hours sleep for their brains to develop normally and to focus properly.

Many experts say having too many caffeinated beverages during the day can cut the average sleep time from 9.7 hours sleep to 9.1 hours of sleep.  Over time that adds up.  Having a television in the child's room and playing video games right before bedtime can stimulate the brain, too.  Using the television in the room at night and video games gives an additional two hours loss of sleep per week.  Having lack of sleep is can diminish the memory and learning ability.  This has a direct relationship to school performance. 

Lastly, kids are exhausted because parents overscheduled activities for their children.  Kids go to school early in the morning with lack of sleep already.  Then, kids come home from school and are committed to two to three different activities everyday.  The family stops off at fast food restaurant.  They get home and do their homework.  The children are finally in bed by between 9 and 10 PM.  The child barely gets their sleep they need because they have a caffeinated beverage in their system from dinner, and they have had a busy evening and had no time to stop and calm down before they go to bed.

 Better Students Tip: It is best to NOT give your kids caffeinated beverages during the evening meal.  Also, do not let them watch TV shows or play video games before bed.  Anything that would stimulate children will decrease the time it takes to fall asleep.  Finally, ensure that your kids get the 10 hours of sleep they need.

"How do I help my child understand what they read?"  

Comprehension development does not actually happen until your child is around the 4th grade.  Before that age, the brain has not yet fully developed to form the necessary connections that need to be made.  However, there are ways to help the brain along in making these necessary connections.

However, one thing that does not help is television.  Part of comprehension is the ability to form images in your brain, which television takes away.  Although your brain is not a muscle, it can function much like a muscle.  That is, to make it better, you have to work it. You do not work your brain while watching television.  The television forms the images for you.  Since your brain is not doing the work needed, it just sits there just taking in what it is given.  You need to work your brain "muscle" to develop it more if you want comprehension to occur.

Playtime is important to the development of the child's mind in the area of comprehension.  They need to use their imagination, to make things up, to play make-believe.  Even daydreaming has its merits to help out in better comprehension for children.  These will help work your child's brains as well.

Parent's often think that reading is a good way to help the child with comprehension.  However, comprehension techniques has to actually come first as the child is often struggling to just read the words when they are younger, and the meaning behind the words are lost.

Better Students Tip:  One thing that works great with young children are audio books.  They listen to the events that are happening in the story and that gets the brain 'muscle" working.  They form their own pictures in their minds as they hear the story.  They are drawn into the story and become captivated by it.  That is how you can tell that their brain muscle are working.  Afterwards, talk about the story, or have them write about the audio book with some carefully guided questions - and ask them to give you lots of details.  It is interesting to hear how each child will focus on something different in each story, but they do get the main point of the story.  Use this tool to help your child better comprehend what they later read.