How to Homeschool Math

"I'm not a math person". People who struggled with math growing up often say this, "I'm not a math person" as though being good at math is something you're born with like being double-jointed. As though math is something you either have, or dont, and if math was something we were born with, I missed the genetic marker on that. However, I'm learning, through teaching my twins, that math is something that comes naturally to some and not-so-naturally to others, but it CAN be taught.

One of my boys is like Rainman. He pretty much built snow castles and disturbed the rest of his class the first two years of school (especially during math), but somehow he can look at a multi-step math problem and get the answer right mentally. I, his mom and teacher, have to draw it out, use a calculator...or the teacher solutions in the back...and demand he show his work to no avail. The other son looks at math like the Greek alphabet and looks at me like the soldier holding him prisoner, demanding he decode it before he can be set free to play. But, I've come to realize that they're just different learners.

The best book for teachers and parents who are naturally good at math and want to teach math well and in depth is Making Math Meaningful by Jamie York. In fact, Jamie has a series of books and I thinked he just launched an online academy. Making Math Meaningful helps remind us all that math is not about numbers, which are insanely dull in my opinion. Math is about logic, spatial reasoning, problem solving, backwards thinking and it's necessary to stretch and work-out the brain. The same way tongue-twisters develop our oral muscles, math develops our brain.

But, most homeschool parents struggle with knowing what, and how, to teach math. We started with Waldorf math in both first and second grades teaching all four operations at once (addition, multiplication, subtraction, and division). Concepts like fractions and measurement were learned through gardening and coking, but in third grade, things advanced and I didn't want the boys to fall behind. I purchased Singapore Math workbooks off Amazon and they are amazing! We complete the grade level book and then the advanced level and my boys are doing fourth grade math their third grade year. I estimate they'll both be testing two to three grades above same aged peers by middle school and able to take advanced courses. The books have reviews, teaching examples and explanations throughout.

Also, IXL.com has become my favorite online resource. I do not use online programs much for homeschooling because most are dumbed down and lack critical thinking, but IXL offers lessons, skill practice, games and assessments. It helps to have one kid on IXL and the other doing their math book with me for 1:1 support and then switch. IXL also recommends skills they need more practice on and sends me a report via email on their activity and success. With a combo of Waldorf math (rich in imagery), IXL and Singapore Math workbooks, I have no fear the boys are going to fall behind in this crucial area of education!

If you haven't checked out the math section at your local library, there are often great resources here like "The Boy Who Dreamed of Infinity" or books on money management taught by following kids who start small businesses, geometry found in architecture around the world and other real world examples that help children connect with the material. I honestly only discovered the math section of my local library when I ran Epoch a few years ago. I was mindblown! Waldorf publications like Sir Cumference and King Maximo and the Number Knights are great, too (linked here).

Happy mathing, nerds!

Chelsea