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Particularly this week I had the opportunity to help my son to study the multiplication tables to present a pending exam. However, getting into this subject and mathematics in general can cause despair, frustration, worry or stress for both the child and the parents and it is important to emphasize the importance of mastering numbers in school, studies and daily life.
Teaching children mathematics has long been seen as a task that very few parents dare to do, so sometimes they delegate the responsibility entirely to teachers or rely on extra classes to receive the necessary guidance and thus resolve doubts and concerns. It is important to emphasize the importance of finding the tools to support children in their studies and if they do not have the required knowledge it is advisable to seek help in the area that is required, be it mathematics, English, science, among others.
Certainly for some parents it may be easier to guide the child than others, however, today there are many strategies and tools that can be used where creativity, fun and can be linked to everyday situations where the child can see the usefulness of their study and mastery so they are not only limited to memorize a number, a formula that eventually is forgotten.
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It is advisable not to transmit to the child from the first moment the fear of mathematics based on the experiences of parents or other comments, we must encourage them to connect with the numbers daring to try and make mistakes we must avoid discouraging them and create barriers from the beginning which hinders their learning.
So the first step to guide and help them is to have patience, it is a job that must be done day by day, without forgetting that they are children and that their learning pace may vary depending on age and content studied, with perseverance you can get great results.
It is very important to show confidence and trust in their abilities and skills, dedicate time to practice which will allow them to acquire more confidence and mastery of the subject, the ideal is not to wait until the last minute and load it with information that will not be fixed.
Creative methods can be used such as songs, games, videos, drawings, and colorful posters for a better visualization of the content.
Any everyday situation can be used to practice mathematics, such as trips to the supermarket, watching TV, in the kitchen, with simple but very practical examples and exercises.
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Parents together with teachers play a fundamental role in the learning of mathematics in children, so we must pay attention to this aspect to avoid fear which can alienate them in their studies and feel that it is very difficult and they are not able to learn.
