Showing posts sorted by relevance for query math. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query math. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query math. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query math. Sort by date Show all posts

10 Top-Notch Ways to Motivate Students to Study and Learn

10 Ways to Motivate Students to Study and Learn


Students who are inattentive or put little effort into their school work are unlikely to benefit from better instruction or school curriculum. So, how can teachers help students become motivated? From putting students in control to offering rewards, motivation can be both encouraged and provided. Here’s an in-depth look at ten ways to motivate students to study and learn more effectively.

This post contains Amazon affiliate links.


ways to motivate students to study and learn more effectively


An in-depth look at ten ways to motivate you students  



1. Put Students in Control of Their Learning Experience  

Education makes some kids feel like they’re being controlled. When a student feels that lack of control, they generally withdrawal from learning. It’s important that students are given control over their learning experience. 

A good way to do this is to give students options. For example, when assigning math questions, allow students to complete either the evens or the odds. That way, they can choose which one they want to complete. 

Students that are given more control and can have direct input in respect to their learning experiences, activities, and environment, become more engaged and even want to learn.  


2. Develop an Atmosphere for Reading  

It’s known that students who develop a love for reading also love learning. The two are interconnected. Reading, not only helps students develop a wide vocabulary, but it allows their brains to learn how to process formal communication. 


Enrich your classroom by providing students with a variety of quality outside information. You can find reading materials from sources like the New York Times, Forbes, or Science stage.
You can also assign students a book report related to one of your key objectives. That way, students can learn more about an essential topic from an expert in a field. 


3. Focus on Student Interests 

To engage students, focus on topics that they find interesting. Not every objective is interesting to every student, however, you can relate lessons to current trends to reach more students. For example, when coming up with a math question, you can ask students about the latest internet challenge. For the ice bucket challenge, you might pose a question regarding the volume of the bucket.


4. Make Learning Entertaining Through Game-Based Learning  

Game-based learning has been around for a long time. In fact, game-based learning has many beneficial qualities. It not only provides opportunities for extensive learning and development of non-cognitive abilities, but it helps students want to play the game which, in turn, teaches them a new skill or some other aspect of your lesson plans.

When a child is actively playing a game, their mind experiences the joy of learning something new. This is true whether the game is considered entertainment, like a video game or it has a more serious tone like a military simulator. Games that are entertaining have an added benefit of being engaging, thus motivating students to learn more. 

Game-based learning is a successful motivation tool for team-based learning. Since students generally become more competitive in order to win, they may perform better in the learning portions of the game to earn more points. 

Game-based learning is a perfect way for teachers to introduce new concepts or ideas into the classroom. Start with a fun game like classroom jeopardy, or allow students to visit an interactive website and compete online with other students at their grade level.


5. Encourage Communication  

Students should feel encouraged to express their opinions about what’s going on with their education. They should feel comfortable to express their likes or dislikes. Often, when students feel like they can’t speak up, they withdrawal from the learning process.  

It’s best to create an open atmosphere where all students know that their opinion matters. Students should know they won’t be judged, ignored, put down, or discouraged. Instead, students should know you're paying attention and listening to their concerns. That way, students will communicate better if any issue arises. 


 6. Allow Students to Learn Outside of the Classroom  

While book work is important, students sometimes become frustrated at the amount of book work that is required. It’s essential to provide students with fun activities that they can do outside of the classroom. 

Provide students with a list of educational activities they can complete outside of the classroom with friends or family. Activities like baking and shopping allow students to relate what they've learned in school to the real world. Homeschoolers can include these activities in their daily instruction. Measuring and finance are great future skills. Kids find these real world ways of learning math more enjoyable. Math makes more sense when we see the applications as useful.


7. Set Attainable Goals   

It’s important that you set attainable goals for all students. Most students like to feel challenged. Stimulating students helps them to want to set and achieve goals. When they find the expectations attainable, they're more likely to strive to reach the goal.

8. Use Positive Competition 

Competition isn’t always a bad thing, sometimes it motivates students to work harder to achieve a 100% score. One of the best ways to use positive competition is to allow students to take part in a friendly math competition. That way, students get to work together to show off their knowledge and help others that might not understand higher math concepts. Teachers can add math concepts that are relevant to their lesson plans. 


9. Track Students Progress  

It's sometimes difficult for students to understand just how far they’ve come in a particular subject, especially when they find the subject hard to comprehend. Tracking a student’s progress, motivates students, allowing them to visualize how much they've achieved as the year progresses. This is especially important for homeschool learners. Keep track of their progress with programs like, MobyMax, which tracks progression by finding and fixing gaps in learning through relevant grade level, online lessons.


10. Offer Rewards   

Rewards are an excellent source of motivation. Everyone likes to earn rewards. Students will study hard and aim for success in hopes of winning the top prize. Rewards can be large or small, depending on the grade level of the class or age of the students. Older students may not find a lollipop reward very motivating.

For example, choose rewards like a pizza party, ice cream party, or even a donut party or extra credit points for older students. With younger students, simple rewards like a piece of candy, a sticker, or a small toy will provide motivation.







Have you tried any of these ways to motivate students to study and learn more efficiently? 
Student motivation is essential in every stage of education. Focus on student interests, encourage communication, track a student’s progress and offer rewards at every stage. Since every student is motivated differently, make sure to customize your motivation strategies for individual students. 

Check out the recommended reading below for additional ways to motivate students to learn and study. 



Recommended:

Futuristic Architecture for Kids


Simple Math Games 

Lessons for Homeschoolers











Free Online Homeschool Curriculum Recommendations

Curriculum Recommendations for Online Homeschooling


Whether you're new to homeschooling or you've been doing it for years, you're probably on the hunt for new, exciting, and engaging curriculum ideas. We get bored with the daily grind and change it up from year to year or even season to season. Here's a list of mostly free online homeschool curriculum recommendations that we've used and enjoyed. We've tried MANY other options, but these are our favorites.

This post contains affiliate links.

Free Online Homeschool Curriculum Recommendations
Free Online Homeschool Curriculum Recommendations.


Brainpop Jr. is my favorite program for younger elementary and preschool. The videos are fun to watch, and the kids always looked forward to using Brainpop Jr. for Homeschooling

Brainpop has a an online homeschool for middle school and high school, but we often found topics we wanted only on Brainpop Jr. The upper grade version is nice for supplementing classroom curriculum. If you use the paid version, you have access to more functions and all lessons.

MobyMax is a great online homeschool app to find out where your kids are in their homeschool learning experience. They can take placement tests in all subjects and then the program finds learning gaps and helps kids focus and build on the areas where they may be struggling. The content isn't as fun and engaging as Brainpop. It is a more definitive tool for classroom use, helping teachers to keep all students on track. MobyMax can be used as a supplement or as full homeschool curriculum up to eighth grade.

Khan Academy is (or should be) a household name for homeschoolers. In the beginning, Khan Academy targeted older students and even offered SAT prep. Now, they also offer more curriculum for elementary school. It keeps track of their lessons and lets you know when students are struggling or when they are ready to move to the next level.

The kids prefer Khan Academy math to any other online homeschool math program, but homeschool mom always liked to supplement with free Brainpop math videos to make sure the kids understood the talking points. Khan Academy can get monotonous for day to day homeschooling. Sal does a great job, but it can get a little boring after awhile. We also supplement our Khan Academy math with Life of Fred textbooks. These books are easy to read and tell a fun story while sneaking in practical math lessons.

Now, there are new instructors and new curriculum on KA. My daughter enjoys studying high school and college level psychology and art history through Khan Academy.

My son does well with virtual homeschool. So, for online high school homeschooling, we are sticking with Connections Academy. In Indiana, it is a free online public school. Connections Academy offers group gatherings and field trips. He gets through the assignments quickly (though, I'm told many homeschoolers struggle to get their lessons done on time) so we supplement with weekly enrichment including museum homeschool programs and educational YouTube videos like John and Hank Green's Crash Course in American History.

Sometimes, when he's struggling on a particular topic, (for high school all text books are online) we find a compatible Life of Fred homeschooling book to fll in any gaps. It's nice to have a good, old book that you can hold in your hand and flip through the pages. He enjoys reading them outside while enjoying his hammock.

Sure, Connections Academy has teachers and attendance to keep, but when it's all done, he'll have official transcripts for college. 

I prefer Connections High School to their Elementary program. The elementary program seemed a little too intense. Especially, when you want the freedom of homeschooling. They're still working out the bugs and it gets better every year, in the past, we had to have weekly check ups with the elementary teachers. For high school, signing in and doing your work suffices. As it should...

In 2017, this homeschool mom broke her leg. That made planning homeschool curriculum and doing enrichment activities difficult. So, my daughter was pretty much on her own. She did great with MobyMax (so I could keep up with her learning) and supplementing with YouTube videos of her choosing. But, homeschool mom felt like maybe she was failing her daughter by not being as involved. So, this fall, we are trying something new! Acellus. I stumbled upon Acellus last year when I was laid up in bed. Many other homeschoolers told me it was expensive, but I was sure I found a free or nearly free version. 

But whenever, I looked it up, I found the paid online homeschool version, which seems to be set up like Connections academy, but with a private school fee. That's not for us! I gave up for a while, and recently tried again. It seems they also have a homeschool app which is found on a separate website, PowerHomeschool. The homeschool app differs from the online homeschool version, because the videos are canned - meaning they are pre-recorded 

That's just what we wanted! We like working at our own pace. These videos are similar to videos my daughter finds on YouTube, but these organized by grade level. We'll choose math, science, language arts, foreign language, and music this year. At the time of this posting, the app is $9.99 per month, basically the same as the paid homeschool version of Brainpop. We're looking forward to starting her in the homeschool middle school program this fall. 

The PowerHomemschool website describe the homeschool curriculum like this: "Students proceed through the course in a step-by-step fashion watching a video lesson and then completing assessment problems. Students receive reviews and unit, mid-term, and final exams as they proceed through the course. Learning gaps are assessed and filled as students move through the course concept by concept."

Seems like a fair option to give it a test drive before you jump into their online school curriculum. 

We'll also supplement with Life of Fred fractions and beginning algebra. One thing I've missed the last few years, is doing hands-on science experiments. After previewing the Acellus app's science curriculum, I was excited to try it. With a Google search for online homeschool curriculum, the app is hard to find. They have moved it to a new website with a different name. Find it here: PowerHomeschool

Bottom line, don't break the bank to homeschool. We have SO many books, every year, I'd go out and buy new books. We never got through most of them. Find a free online homeschool curriculum, that works for you and stick with it. Then, supplement with fun enrichment activities and family outings.

We also involve the kids in day to day household concerns. We talk about finances, debt, and even recently including them in every step of the home buying process. That included going to a lender, saving for a down payment, creative ways to find extra money like garage sales, selling off items no longer needed, the highs and lows of Craigslist and eBay, getting a water and septic test at the state level, watching our credit scores, budgeting for groceries, finding ways to cut costs to save for the new house, and even going to a county courthouse to pick up documents needed to close. So many lessons here. At the courthouse, we all had to go through the security, empty our pockets, etc. The next steps, include renovating the new house. 

Family struggles and life lessons are often kept from kids. In my opinion, this tends to give the kids an unrealistic view of what it is like to be a grown up. They can't wait to get out of the house and start their own life, but reality gets in the way of their happiness. Keeping kids life lessons and keeping them in the know, helps them better prepare for the future. Isn't that what homeschooling is all about?

So, what do you think of this list of free online homeschool curriculum recommendations? Do you have something you really love? Tell us about it in the comments or find Kids Creative Chaos on Instagram and chat with us there!


Recommended:





Pin it!


Free Online Homeschool Curriculum Recommendations


Free Online Homeschool Science Lesson: Classifying Plants and Animals Activities

Classifying Plants and Animals Activities and Videos for Homeschool Science

In this free online homeschool science lesson, we are classifying plants and animals. These science activities and videos are a fun way for homeschoolers to learn online. Lessons have material suitable for preschool, elementary, middle school, and high school. We round up the information and links each week as we teach homeschool to our own children. Every link has been child tested. Scroll down for the interactive student lesson. Lesson for Preschoolers is at the bottom of the post.


Free Online Homeschool Science Lesson: Classifying Plants and Animals Activities
Free Online Homeschool Science Lesson: Classifying Plants and Animals Activities.

Classifying Plants and Animals Online Homeschool Lesson

Elementary and Middle School Science: Target Grades 3-8
with components for preschool, early elementary, and high school.



Teacher Resources:

Classifying Plants and Animals Lesson Ideas

Make your own Worksheets and Printables

Early Elementary Lessons on Classifications



Student Lesson:

Do this: Keep these questions in mind as you the watch the videos.

Questions on Plant Growth click on the questions to find the answers, make sure you click through all 4 pages of questions!

PBS Video: What Plants Talk About 

Learn more about Carnivorous Plants.

Play this Cool Science Game on How Plants Grow (8-11 yrs.).

Read about Plant GrowthWhat are the Kingdoms? If you want to watch these videos, you'll have to log into Brainpop. I'm told you can do a search and find Brainpop freebies, coupon codes, and passwords. Here is a free Biology lesson on the Six Kingdoms.

More about Plant Adaptations from Brainpop free for everyone.


Math Component

This Cool Companion Math Game is for Middle School and up. 

This Middle School to High School Plant Lesson Game teaches Math and Economics. You'll start your own business and work to keep the plants alive and well using your math skills. 

We found another cool math game for kids, but... there's an app for that! Ask your parent or teacher if you can install, Ruby Realms.


Art Component

Make Pressed Flowers

Make Thanksgiving Leaf Garland


Science Fair Project or Science Experiment from Science Buddies Experiment on Plant Growth for Middle Schoolers.


****************************************************

Show what you've learned so far:

Grab your Science Journal: Name 3 types of Plant Classifications. Then, draw a plant and then list out the main parts of it.



1.___________________________________________________


2.___________________________________________________


3.___________________________________________________

Classifying Animals Lessons

Classifying Animals - Free Brainpop Jr. Video. Make sure you take the quiz. Try the easy quiz and the hard quiz. You can do it! 

More on Animal Classification from Sheppard's Kids Corner.


Show what you've learned so far:

Grab your Science Journal: What are the Six Kingdoms? Need to research? Do a safe search here KidRex.org


1.___________________________________________________


2.___________________________________________________


3.___________________________________________________


4.___________________________________________________

5.___________________________________________________


6.___________________________________________________



Science Just for Fun Online Games


Are you smarter than a plant?
Are you smarter than a plant? Find out on Kongregate.com



Early Elementary Component 
Pre-K - 3, but suitable for older kids too!

Plant Song

Dora's Plant Growth Game for Preschoolers

Farming Lesson for Kindergarten



Fun Activities

Make these Free Printable Animal Trading Cards

Test your knowledge: Play Matching Classification Game


Recommended Reading:




kccbutton125.jpg          
Copyright 2014 by Lora Langston, Kids Creative Chaos.

First Grade Math Activity Games using Tens and Ones

First grade game for math activity center involving tens and ones counting

You can make this game activity at home, and print a free printable tens and ones chart to play it. Playing with dice makes learning tens and ones counting fun for first graders. Enjoy!



Math Activity Game Free Printable Chart Tens and Ones
Visit the link above to print these charts.
Printable Hundreds Chart for First Grade Math
Printable Hundreds Chart.










Tens and ones math activity game for first grade counting
Help your early elementary or preschooler learn 
about tens and ones with this game.


You will need  12 mini cups, 2 dice, and macaroni. 
We used Phineas and Ferb Macaroni.

Mark six of your cups with the number 10 and six with the number 1.

Take turns rolling the dice and building numbers. Child chooses which number to build. For example, the roll shown above can be played as 46 or 64.


Place the dice in the squares on the free printable playing chart. Use the Hundreds chart to help count to 64. 


Then, build the numbers in the cups. For sixty four, place 10 pieces of macaroni in six cups (60) and one macaroni in four number one cups (4).


Once cups are filled, count to find out how many tens and ones. 64 = 6 Tens, Four ones. Mark this on your playing chart. Under the appropriate heading.


For further understanding, use the free printable hundreds chart to check your work. If macaroni adds up to the number rolled score 5 points. First one to 20 points wins.



Recommended Reading:

Using Ten Frames to Teach Number Sense, Grades K-1*

Online Lessons for Homeschooling











ADS DISCLOSURE: We've partnered with some wonderful advertisers who may sponsor blog posts or send us samples to test. Some companies pay us to review their products.

*We also use affiliate links, if you make a purchase we get a tiny commission. Kids Creative Chaos participates in the Amazon LLC Associates Program*, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a mean for blogs to earn advertising fees by linking to Amazon properties, including, but not limited to, amazon.com, endless.com, myhabit.com, smallparts.com, or amazonwireless.com. We also offer Tapinfluence, Google Adsense, SoFab, and Izea ads here. Thanks so much for helping us keep the lights on! :)


Saint Patrick's Day Math Game The Stingy Leprechaun Counting Money

Stingy Leprechaun the Perfect Saint Patrick's Day Math Game. 

This stingy leprechaun wants to keep his money while you learn to count it. This first to third grade St. Patrick's Day math activity is for children of all ages. Learn the basics of counting money. Printable templates included. We played this math game for counting money with our first and third graders and the third grader loved it. Of course, he was in it to win. Enjoy!

Saint Patrick's Day Game The Stingy Leprechaun Homeschool Counting Money
Stingy little leprechaun wants to keep his coins.

How to play:  Roll the dice and take that number of coins or dollar bills. You want to trade up to a $20 dollar bill to win. To open Stingy's arms and get the money you must roll the magic number a two (2) or four (4). Once you've opened his arms roll again. This number reveals the amount of money you can take from the pot. But wait, there's more! For complete printable instructions click here.


Right click to save to your computer or click here for 
free printable template pdf.

Right click to save to your computer 
or click here for free printable template pdf.

You might like these eight easy St. Patrick's Day Crafts for Kids or St. Paddy's Activities Boys will like.


Recommended Reading:


The Leprechaun's Gold*

Holiday Plays for PreK - 4*












ADS DISCLOSURE: We've partnered with some wonderful advertisers who may sponsor blog posts or send us samples to test. Some companies pay us to review their products.

*We also use affiliate links, if you make a purchase we get a tiny commission. Kids Creative Chaos participates in the Amazon LLC Associates Program*, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a mean for blogs to earn advertising fees by linking to Amazon properties, including, but not limited to, amazon.com, endless.com, myhabit.com, smallparts.com, or amazonwireless.com. We also offer Tapinfluence, Google Adsense, SoFab, and Izea ads here. Thanks so much for helping us keep the lights on! :)


5 Signs That Your Child May Need a Tutor

Is it time for a Tutor?

Do you need a tutor for you child? Is your child bringing home one bad report card after the other? Have you noticed your child has difficulty studying or doing homework on a particular subject? If so, you should probably consider hiring a tutor to help them study.
This post contains Amazon affiliate links.
Does your child need a tutor? Signs your kid needs tutored.
Most children occasionally struggle with school, but when it turns into a rapid decline in grades, frequent meltdowns, and hating going to school, it's time to get a plan in order.
So, what are the signs that your child may need a tutor? Keep reading to learn 5 important signs that you're child may need a tutor.

1. Homework Meltdowns

If your child has regular homework meltdowns, it's probably because they can't understand the task or subject. Of course, don't rule out an optical issue. Be sure they have regular eye check ups. School work might be too advanced for your child's skill level and cause them stress and anxiety.
This is a great time to hire a tutor to help with breaking down tasks and concepts in a simpler way. Tutors often have simple tricks for remembering math facts or other educational short cuts. No matter what the homework, with a tutor's help, your child will gain confidence knowing they can tackle it with better organization and time management skills.


2. Slipping Grades

If your child's grades are slipping gradually or unexpectedly, talk to their teachers to get some insight on the matter. Of course, also talk to your child to see what's going on and if there's a subject they feel they is difficult and frustrating.
When it comes to learning and getting higher grades, getting your child tutoring lessons is very effective in boosting their ability and self-esteem

3. Behavioral Changes

School stress is normal and most children experience stress on some level throughout the school year. However, when the stress over reading, doing homework, and studying for tests becomes chronic, it can start to affect your child's personality, behavior, or happiness in a negative way. This is the time to look into what's happening. In most cases, it is related to difficulties learning or understanding a subject and it might be a good time for a tutor. (Of course it can also be related to eye health, bullying, or a problem with a teacher. so be sure to talk to your child and always ask, "How was your day?")

4. Lack of Interest in Learning

If you notice your child doesn't have any interest in studying or learning, this if often a sign of learning difficulties. Sit with your child and discuss their feelings about school. Then, decide together on hiring a tutor to help.
Math is one of the more difficult subjects for many children and can take down their self-esteem and motivation to learn. A math tutor for kids will not only teach your child how to solve mathematical problems, but they can also provide math tips on easier methods for learning.

5. Learning Disabilities

If your child is still having difficulties, even after tutoring, you might want to test them for possible learning disabilities. These include dyslexia, ADHD, visual processing issues, and dyscalculia. You might be surprised by the results. We were!
We were able to target the best type of treatment. You'll be able to find the best tutor for your child's specific needs.

Does Your Child Need a Tutor? These Tips Will Help You Decide

If you've been wondering if you need a tutor to help your child with school, these tips should help you decide. Before you hire one, talk to your children's teachers and see what additional concerns that they may have. This will help you find the right tutor for your child.
For more kids and parenting tips, check out some of the other articles on my website where you'll find kids activities, school tips, and games ideas.

Recommended:
Free School Lessons from Adventures of Kids Creative Chaos