Did you know that your children could lose one to three months' worth of learning during the summer?
“But this doesn’t have to be the case,” states Susan Jarema,
founder of Googol Learning and producer of the Googol Power Math Series. “There
are many ways to encourage learning math. I want this summer to be a time for
kids to get ahead!”
Did you know that your children could lose one to three months' worth of learning
during the summer? “But this doesn’t have to be the case,”
states Susan Jarema, founder of Googol Learning and producer of the Googol Power
Math Series. “I’ve decided to do more than just stop the brain drain.
I want this summer to be a time for kids to get ahead!” To encourage continued
learning, Jarema has posted all of the times tables music videos from the newly
released DVD “Multiplication Vacation” online for free viewing over
the summer. (www.googolpower.com)
A study by Dr. Harris Cooper, professor of Psychology at the University of
Missouri-Columbia states that students lose one to three months worth of learning
after the long summer vacation. And the decline is often more detrimental for
math than for reading. “All students lose math skills”, says Cooper.
This is likely due to the fact that kids are provided with more opportunities
at home and in the community to practice reading. There are few programs in
place that support math. (Source: Familyeducation.com)
Jarema emphatically notes, “Math skills do not need to be lost during
the summer. Opportunities to practice math are everywhere and can easily be
made a part of so many activities we do. They can be fun activities like card
games, cooking, gardening, building, crafts, shopping - talk about fractions
as you cut up a watermelon, double a recipe, measure the area for your new garden.
You can even find math watching the Tour de France – it has become such
a science.”
Viewing the free online videos from “Multiplication Vacation” is
one way to spark an interest in practicing math. There are also free worksheets
and printable games to help children practice both addition and multiplication.
In addition, Googol Power has also sponsored the 2005 Crazy 4 Math Contest to
encourage summer learning (www.crazy4math.com). Children everywhere are sharing
ideas of how they use math in activities they enjoy.
The summer is a great time to encourage your child to set some goals and learn
something new. From the library to the internet, all the tools are in place
to turn some of your child’s spare time into learning time. Googol Power
has set up the Math Facts Challenge (also free) for kids to commit to their
own goal. Children fill in a short online form committing to practice their
math a little each day. “Most children have been choosing to learn their
times tables, but the goals are varied. We even had a mom sign up her goal to
learn more math so she could help her kids!” says Jarema. “The most
important factor in making this work is having your child decide for themselves
that they want to complete their goal.”
So here’s your chance! Unplug your TV and put away the Game-Boy. Encourage
your child to set a goal, help him or her find some resources and keep it fun.
Surprise everyone, including the new teacher next September, by turning this
summer into a brain gain!
For more ideas and resources on ways to make math exciting visit the Learning
with Googol Power website at www.googolpower.com. “Multiplication Vacation”
and “Addition Celebration” can be found in specialty educational
stores, bookstores, Amazon and at the Googol power website. Contact Googol Learning
for more information on educational fundraisers, school show and creative math
workshops for parents www.googollearning.com. Or visit http://googolpower.com/media.php
