Watch this video featuring Carrie Heaney, a math teacher at Sky Vista Middle School in the Cherry Creek School District and winner in 2010 of the most prestigious honors a math teacher can get – the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.
In short, Heaney encourages parents to urge their middle-schoolers to ask questions in class if they’re struggling to understand a concept. Mathematicians are unapologetic askers of questions.
Encourage your son or daughter to write their question on a sticky note and put it on their desk so they will remember to ask it without becoming obsessed with his or her own question and missing all other discussions in class.
When your son or daughter comes home from school or at the dinner table, ask her what question she asked and what the answer was. Ask a few more probing questions yourself to make sure your daughter really understands the concept.
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First Person is where Chalkbeat features personal essays by educators, students, parents, and others trying to improve public education. Read our submission guidelines here.