***ST. JUDE UPDATE***

The St. Jude Math-a-Thon is underway!  Students who are participating should be fishing their Funbooks and working on collecting donations. 

Funbooks and Donations are due Wednesday, February 10! 

Fifth graders... Are you stuck on a math problem? Read below to review the Math "UNRAAVEL" technique. 

Math UNRAAVEL

by Larry Bell 

 ^{Steps for being successful math problem solvers}

^{U (Underline the question.)}

^{N (Now predict what you think you need to do to solve the problem.)}

^{R (Read the word problem.)}

^{A (Are the important words circled?)}

^{A (Apply the steps you chose to solve the problem.)}

^{V  (Verify your answer.  Does it make sense?  Is it reasonable?)}

^{E (Eliminate wrong answers.)}

L (Let the answer stay or rework the problem.)

^{Just For Parents Section}

Top Ten Ways to Help Your Kids Do Well in Math

Mastering Math
Mastering mathematics is absolutely essential for future opportunities in school and careers. Your children will need to reach a certain level of competency in math to take many advanced high-school courses, to be admitted to college, and to have a wide variety of career choices. Here's how you can help them maximize their math-smarts.

1. Make sure your children understand mathematical concepts...
...otherwise, math becomes a meaningless mental exercise of just memorizing rules and doing rote drills. Have your children manipulate objects to figure out basic concepts. For addition, they could add one, two, or more blocks to a pile of blocks and then tell you how many blocks are in the pile.

2. Help them master the basic facts. 
Mastery of a basic fact means that children can give an answer in less than three seconds. Considerable drill is required for children to give quick responses. Use flash cards to help your children learn the basic facts. When they don't know an answer, have them lay out objects to solve the problem. Don't assume that 5th graders know their multiplication facts.  Many still need practice!

3. Teach them to write their numbers neatly. 
Twenty-five percent of all errors in solving math problems can be traced back to sloppy number writing.  Suggest they use graph paper to keep the numbers in problems neatly aligned.

4. Provide help immediately when your children need it. 
Math is one subject in which everything builds upon what has been previously learned. For example, a failure to understand the concept of percent leads to problems with decimals. If a teacher is unable to help your children, provide the help yourself or use a tutor or learning center.

5. Show them how to handle their math homework. 
Doing math homework reinforces the skills your children are learning in class. Teach them to begin every assignment by studying the textbook or worksheet examples. Then have them redo the examples before beginning the assignment to make sure they understand the lesson.

6. Encourage your children to do more than the assigned problems. 
Considerable practice is necessary for your children to hone their math skills. If the teacher only assigns the even problems, having them do some of the odd ones will strengthen their skills. The more time your children spend practicing their skills, the sooner they will develop confidence in their abilities.

7. Explain how to solve word problems. 
Mathematicians have an expression: To learn to solve problems, you must solve problems. Teach your children to read a word problem several times. Also, have them draw a picture or diagram to describe it. Make it easier for them to understand the steps in a problem by teaching them to substitute smaller numbers for larger ones.

8. Help your children learn the vocabulary of mathematics. 
They will never get a real feeling for math nor learn more advanced concepts without an understanding of its vocabulary. Check that your children can define new terms. If not, have them use models and simple problems to show you they understand how the term is used.

9.Teach them how to do math "in their head."
One of the major ways to solve problems is by using mental math. Kids should use this method frequently instead of using pencil and paper or a calculator. When helping your children with a problem, help them determine when it would be appropriate to use mental math.

10. Make mathematics part of your children's daily life. 
Mathematics will become more meaningful when your kids see how important it is in so many real-life situations. Encourage them to use math in practical ways. For example, ask them to space new plants a certain distance apart, double a recipe, and pay bills in stores.

     How Will Math Look in Your Child's Classroom?

^{As a result of the recent effort in mathematics teaching to include understanding in the teaching of math, from basic through advanced levels, the picture of your child's math class may, indeed, look different from what you remember when you were in school. For instance:}

 ^{Students will be expected to know their math facts: Students will be learning their math facts with an understanding of how facts relate to each other.
 Students will be doing more than arithmetic: Students will be seeing that math is much more than arithmetic (knowing the facts and number operations); it involves estimation, geometry, probability, statistics, and more.
 Students will be striving to achieve high goals: Students will be achieving high standards of understanding, complexity, and accuracy set for them by their parents, teachers, schools, and states.
 Students will be actively involved in the study of mathematics:  Students will be doing tasks that involve investigations. They will be talking and writing explanations for their thinking.
 Students will be working with one another: Students will be collaborating to make discoveries, draw conclusions, and discuss math.
 Students will be evaluated in a variety of ways: Teachers will use many different ways to determine if children know and understand math concepts. Some of these will include writing samples, projects, or written tests. Not all evaluation will be the same for every classroom or every child.
 Students will be using calculators to solve problems: They will be using calculators not as crutches but as tools to solve more complex problems with bigger numbers than they could do otherwise. Children with good knowledge of math facts, number sense, and reasoning about math will be able to use the calculator most effectively.
 Students will be using computers: They will be developing databases, researching data, exploring math games and solving problems.}

^Thin