ematics, which is important for a child’s overall academic and personal development. It’s easy for kids to think they have to memorize math facts just for school or because the teacher tells them to. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth.
So here are some everyday math facts examples you can use to explain to your kids why mastering math facts is so useful and important for them.
#1 – Shopping for anything at all
When you go grocery shopping, you have to calculate the total cost of your purchases, figure out the change you’ll receive, and determine whether or not you can afford to buy certain items.
We buy things every day – food, clothes, toys or school supplies. Without being able to calculate how much it all costs and budget for it, we would all be lost.
We manage all of this only if we have a mastery of numbers and can make quick computations in our heads, without the aid of a calculator.
#2 – Telling time
Telling time is more than just reading the face of a watch or phone.
Do you know how much time you have between now and 7am tomorrow?
Understanding basic math concepts is essential for telling time. We need to know how to count by fives to read a clock with minutes, and understand basic arithmetic like adding and subtracting to understand elapsed time.
Can you estimate how much time it will take you to finish your homework if you can start 20 minutes from now? Or by what time should you be in bed if you want to get 9 hours of sleep and be awake by 6:30 in the morning?
#3 – Measuring anything
Ask your children these questions: Can you tell exactly how far away one school is from another? Did you gain height and weight over the last year? How many sheets of paper would you need to wrap a gift of a particular size? How long should the fabric or wood for a school project be? Can you follow recipe instructions on how to make cookies for your friend’s birthday or “elephant toothpaste” for a science fair? How do you divide a pizza fairly between you, your parents, and your siblings?
All of these activities require your children to know how to measure various things like distance, length, height, weight, volume, and temperature – and do computations with any of the values they’ve measured. That means having memorized any math facts examples involving addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division of whole numbers and fractions or decimals.
When baking, measuring ingredients is an important aspect of getting the recipe right. Understanding fractions and decimals is essential to measuring ingredients accurately. (Without measuring, you have nothing delicious to look forward to for your next birthday party…)
#4 – Estimating
Math skills are also needed whenever you participate in contests, games, or sports. It’s easy to keep track of points as a spectator. But what about estimating the final score based on how things are going?
That requires the knowledge of math facts, taking time and measuring all combined.
Or how long will it take to reach a destination by car after 8 miles have been travelled over 20 minutes, with 6 more miles to go?
#5 – Selling stuff or doing jobs for money
When you earning money, whether through an allowance or by doing chores for people, you need to know how to make change. Basic arithmetic is essential for figuring out how much change to give and receive.
The same goes for budgeting. When you start managing your own money, it is very important you know how much to save and how much you can spend. Having mastered your math facts is essential for this.
Practice is everything
For all these skills, mastering math facts is critically important. Children can gear up their math practice with games like MathRider. It’s designed to make math facts fun and effective, so your kids won’t get bored or tired while practicing arithmetic.
By mastering math facts, kids will be able to handle everyday tasks with confidence and ease while they’re still young. This will help prepare them for academic and personal success in the future.