It’s nearly Christmas and so time for a fun blog post!  Christmas toys – but with an educational slant.  There are thousands of educational games and toys available, so I’m going to recommend just a small handful that I regularly suggest to parents. 

All these items are under £30 and many are under £15. I am not affiliated with any of the companies or brands mentioned in this blog and receive no payment for recommending them. I’m just sharing what I know children enjoy that will also help them learn.

Watch

Many children struggle to tell the time and many parents ask how they can help their child with this essential life skill.  The best way is to buy them a wristwatch.  It doesn’t really matter what type of watch, although an analogue one (with hands) is good because telling the time on a traditional clock is a trickier concept than digital, and there are still many analogue clocks in the world around us.  A watch with analogue and digital displays are also really useful and help children understand the 24-hour clock.  Children feel grown up with a watch and enjoy using it to work out the time themselves.  Google “children’s watch” and lots of options come up.  I particularly like this one because it has an analogue and 24-hour clock combined. 

As with children who display a good understanding of spelling and sentence formation because they read a lot, children with their own watch pick up the concept of telling the time and time management quicker than children who do not have a way of working out and managing their time for themselves.

Times table Games

Learning times tables can be loads of fun. 

I love these times table snap cards by Green Board Games Co.  I’ve had these for years and you can tell they have been played with and enjoyed quite a few times! Just google “times table snap” and they will come up, along with lots of other brands and variations, such as flash cards.  (I’ve just checked this and there is currently a packet on Ebay for £125! I think that is a typo!) There are various versions, including division facts, so you can choose the set that’s right for your child.

Bananagrams

Bananagrams is such a fantastic game.  Kids love it because the letter tiles are kept in a banana-shaped case and the tiles are really tactile.  The aim is to create a crossword with your letter tiles, but there are various ways to play the game, and some children enjoy just using the letters to spell out words or making up their own spelling games.

There’s also a “My first letter” set for younger children, and an Appletters game too.

Boggle

Another favourite for practising spelling is Boggle.  How many words can you find in the 4X4 grid of letters in 3 minutes? Again, you can vary the game to make it easier or more of a challenge.

Storycubes

Storycubes are great for developing imaginative thinking and storytelling for all ages.  Again, there are different versions and themes, so google “story cubes” or “story dice” and see which one your child will enjoy the most. I got my set from Flying Tiger for about £5.

Books

Reading is the key to all learning.  Children who read for pleasure – regardless of their family background, economic situation or where they live – do better at school, and consequently are more “successful” (whatever that means to them) in life.  Reading is also fantastic for developing empathy for others, especially for people from backgrounds different to our own, and for expanding horizons and aspirations.  It’s also really good for our mental health.  Check out my blog for some book recommendations.

I’ve discovered these “Can you find it” books this year and they have been such a hit with my tutees, right up to the 11 year olds. The images are so well put together and the children love finding the items hidden in the picture. They are also great for developing patience, observation skills and could even be used to inspire story writing! There are four books in total – Food, Around the World, Vehicles and The Zoo.

Orchard Toys

Orchard Toys are fantastic!  They produce games and jigsaws for younger children that are educational and fun.  The games are largely plastic-free and hardwearing. They cover number and letter skills, shape, colour and matching skills among many others!

I hope I’ve inspired some gift ideas and you have fun playing with them over Christmas and beyond!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from The Top Cat Tutor!

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Throughout November I will be going live on my Facebook page to quickly explain some of the most common misconceptions, or stumbling blocks, that the children I work with often display, and provide advice on overcoming them.

I’ll take a look at each of them further in this blog.

The Maths Blocks:

Firstly, a couple of maths issues that crop up again and again: multiplying and dividing by powers of 10 and the commutativity of multiplication.

Multiplying and dividing by powers of 10.

A power of 10 is 10, 100, 1000 etc.  When I was at school, and I’m sure when you were too, we were taught to add zeros when we multiply by powers of 10 and to take zeros away when we divide by powers of 10. It was only when I was in teacher training college 20 years ago that I found out this is mathematically incorrect, and sets children up for problems further down the line (and probably helps explain one reason why I struggled with maths).  It is important to teach this correctly from the start so children don’t get stuck later on.  However, children are still being taught this “trick” and I’ve lost count of the times it has put a barrier in their way over the years.

So, if adding and taking away zeros is not correct, what is?

We need to understand that it is the digits moving and changing their place value.  When multiplying, numbers get bigger, so the digits move up the place values.  This leaves a space, or spaces, so we need to use a zero as a “place holder” to show there are no ones, for example. 

When we divide numbers, they get smaller, so here the numbers move down the place values.

So far, however, the trick of adding or taking away a zero works and gets the right answer, so what’s the issue?  Why does it matter whether we add or take off a zero or move the digits? 

Let’s start with looking at dividing.  When dividing, not all numbers have a zero on the end to “take away”.  If you have been taught to take off a zero and then you are presented with 32÷10, you are now well and truly stuck.  You have no idea how to solve this problem.  You get despondent and frustrated.  Maths becomes “difficult”.  If you have, however, been taught that the digits move, then this barrier never appears.  We just know what to do – move the digits.  No problem was created and we can continue to access maths and understand number. The digits might need to “jump” over the decimal point to become tenths or hundredths. When I was at school, I was told to move the decimal point.  Again, this is fundamentally incorrect.  The decimal point is fixed to the spot.  It doesn’t move.  It is glued down.  The digits move around it.

What about when we are multiplying?  We are adding a zero so why is it a problem?  The answer is because it leads to poor understanding of place value.  This is understanding what each digit represents – hundreds, tens and ones (sometimes called units).  If we just add a zero to 32 without moving any digits we still have 32.  We don’t write 32.0 because the zero tenths is not telling me anything useful, because I don’t need to know I don’t have any tenths.  Adding a zero on the end of 32 does not change the number in any way.  We need to move the digits, then place a zero in the empty place value columns to show clearly what the number is and avoid confusion.  A three in the tens column means 30, but 30 what?  31? 38?  The zero place holder is saying “there are no ones”.  This zero is vital.  And it’s vital it is in the ones column, not the tenths column.  Where it is means very different things.

Children enjoy practising these skills by moving numbers up and down a place value chart.  Imagine the numbers sprouting feet, or wheels, or being pushed in a trolley – whatever works to remember they are MOVING.

To know how many places on the chart to move, look at the power of 10 you are multiplying or dividing by.  10 moves one place because there is one zero, 100 two places because there are two zeros, 1000 three places etc.

Times tables are commutative:

Commutative means that the calculation can be written either way around.  3X4=12 is the same as 4X3 =12.  As I’ve explained in my blog “What Can I do to Help my Child with their Learning?”, it is best to learn all the related times table facts together as it creates less work in the long run.  If you know 3X4 = 12 you therefore know 4X3 = 12 and therefore 12÷4 = 3 and 12÷3=4.  That’s four facts for the price of one!  Lots of children, when presented with 12X5 for example, will say they don’t know their 12 times table.  When asked “do you know your 5 times table?” they say yes and know 5X12 = 60.  Understanding that you can swap the numbers around is liberating.  Children think the 12 times table is hard, or that they don’t know it.  They will know more 12 times questions than they think.  Turn the question around!

The English Blocks:

Over sounding phonemes and resistance to editing writing.

“Uh” Phonics:

Phonemes are the smallest unit of sound within a word.  Children are taught phonics from the early years and there is a huge focus on it in school.  Children will be familiar with the word “phonics” and “phoneme”.  We use phonics to sound out words to help us read and write (this is only helpful to a point in English as lots of English words are not phonetic).

The children I work with who struggle with reading and spelling often are not sounding phonemes correctly.  They say, for example, “c-hu – ah – t-hu”.  We don’t say cat “cuhahtuh”,  it’s “c-a-t”.  The sounds are very small and quiet, with no “uh” on the end.  The vowel sounds (a, e, i, o, u) are louder and may have a slight “uh” on the end, but the consonants are small, made by a little puff of air (b, p), or restricting the back of the throat (c, k, q) for example.  Encourage your child to say the sounds as small and quietly as possible (but still being able to hear them!)  This will help them hear the word they are sounding out – “c-a-t” sounds like “cat” -which helps with reading and spelling.

As a side note, I’ve noticed lots of children calling letters words – “how many words in the word?”  It’s also important to know the difference between the name of the letter (A – ay) and the sound it makes (“a” as in apple).

Proofreading and Editing:

Children are generally great at writing.  They have fantastic ideas which they write down eagerly.  However, many think that once they’ve written the last word (not necessarily with a full stop after it) they are done and it’s time to move on to the next thing.  When you explain that the next thing is to go over and edit the writing, they sometimes become frustrated and despondent, and issues around fear of mistakes and getting things wrong surface.

Children need to understand that writing is a process, and correcting their work is an integral part of that process.  Proofreading (finding spelling, grammar and punctuation errors) and editing (changing the word choice, word order, sentence structure etc) are essential parts of being a writer. Every writer goes through this process and every piece of text that has been professionally published goes through this process, multiple times.  Find your favourite book.  The author didn’t write those words first time, and then it was printed and you bought it.  Those words are there after a process of changing, correcting, adding in or taking out many, many times before it was printed and sent to the shop.  Being a proofreader and/or editor is a career.  People are paid to check writing and make it as good as it can be.  It is not a criticism or telling off.  It is an essential part of the writing process.

When children understand that the first draft of their writing is not the finished version and there is an expectation to proofread and edit, and that is done in an engaging, creative way, they are able to see this as part of the process and embrace the task of making their writing “as good as it can be”.

A first draft should be about getting ideas out of your head and on paper.  Children shouldn’t be worrying about how to spell words or where to put full stops at this stage.  What’s important is getting the ideas down.  The next stage is to check the spelling, punctuation etc.  Children should do this themselves first, before someone else checks it (it is good to have a fresh pair of eyes look at it which is why authors use professional proofreaders and editors.)  Instead of looking for all the things that need changing at once, focus on one thing at a time.  Are the capital letters correct?  Now the full stops and other punctuation?  Are there any words I know are spelt incorrectly, or I think might be?  Check them (put a wiggly line under them first).  Be a writing detective.  Put yourself in the shoes of your reader.  Have you made your writing as clear as possible for them?  Will they understand and enjoy it?

Drafts of writing should be messy.  There should be crossing out, insertion, asterisks to show where new sentences and paragraphs are that couldn’t be fitted in.  Use different coloured pens if it helps, but it’s not necessary.  This shows the child has gone back and thought about their writing, and corrected errors, embedding learning along the way.

Young children in Years 1 and 2 should be checking they have used capital letters and full stops correctly, and maybe checking 1 or 2 spelling words.  Build up the amount of proofreading and editing done as the children become older and more skilled in their writing abilities. 

Editing is often seen as a chore by children, but it is actually a really creative process.  Is there a better word or phrase to use to really get across what I want the reader to know or imagine?  What happens if I move the words around, take a word out, change a word, move a comma…?  Editing is being playful with language.  That is fun!

To see my short explanations of these misconceptions, please visit my Facebook page.  Coming in the new year will be my Learning Support Membership where there will be short, engaging video lessons and supporting activities to address these misconceptions. Do get in touch if you are interested in discussing how I can help support your child’s learning.

I’m now off to proofread and edit this blog before publishing!  What you are reading is not the first draft 😉.

The post Four Common Misconceptions appeared first on Karen Lander - The Top Cat Tutor.

This was a common question at parent’s evening when I was teaching, and something I’m asked regularly by the parents I work with now as a tutor.

My suggestions are below.  Other than the first one which is the most important thing you can do to help your child with their learning, the rest are in no particular order.

Read

Reading is the most important thing children can do to help their learning along.  To find out more, have a read of my blog about the importance of reading here. It doesn’t matter what you read – books (fiction and/or non-fiction), comics, magazines, websites, computer games, instruction manuals, menus, shopping lists, cereal boxes…. just read!  It is the key to everything.

Your child listening to other people read is also fine.  It is important for children to listen to stories as much as reading them themselves.  Hearing someone else reading fluently helps them understand word pronunciation, rhythm, and expression.  It also helps them understand what is going on because they are not having to worry about “decoding” the words (turning the letters into sounds).  If you are confident reading yourself, then sharing a story at bedtime is an enjoyable experience for both of you.  If you don’t feel confident reading yourself, then audiobooks are also fantastic.  Don’t stop your child from listening to stories once they can read independently either.  Everyone loves listening to a story – even adults!

It’s OK for children to re-read stories they enjoy.  I’m an avid re-reader.  Familiarity develops confidence and enjoyment.  You also notice new things with each reading.  It’s also OK for them to sometimes read something “too easy”.  A variety of difficulty is important.  If they are always reading something that is a bit of a challenge, then reading becomes hard work and they no longer enjoy it.  After a “heavy” book about something serious, I usually choose a funny easy-read after it. 

Reading doesn’t have to be expensive either.  I’m a huge advocate of libraries.  They are free to join and are also now able to start running free events again.  You can also borrow audiobooks from them.  I used to love Saturday morning visits to the library as a child.  Books for free – what’s not to like?!

Times Tables

Recall of times tables is an important skill because it is so helpful across many areas of maths, such as fractions, percentages, and area.  It is a life skill. The children who struggle with maths invariably don’t have a solid recall of times tables.

There is a formal times tables test in Year 4 (which has been put on hold during Covid but will probably re-appear) and in Year 5 and 6 understanding of fractions, percentages, etc is made so much easier if children have good times table knowledge.

Don’t just learn them in order:

Eg 1X2, 2X2, 3X2, etc.

Do mix them up:

Eg 5X2, 8X2, 2X2, etc.

When we need to use times tables to access other areas of maths, it will be at random.  Eg a rectangle that is 5cmX12cm to find the area.  If we have to start at 1X12 and work though, it wastes a lot of time.  We need to just be able to recall 5X12 = 60.

Don’t just learn the answers:

Eg 2, 4, 6, 8…

Do say the question:

Eg 1X2=2.

Children who can only recite the answers in order have no access to what that number refers to and therefore really struggle to answer times table questions or apply them to other areas because they only know half of it.  They have to count up on their fingers to find out “how many 2s make 12” for example.  This is frustrating for them and wastes time. Say the whole times table out loud: “two times six is 12”.

Don’t learn the tables one at a time: 

Eg, the 2s, then the 3s, then the 4s etc.

Do learn the associated facts:

Multiplication is commutative (it doesn’t matter which way round the numbers are on either side of the X).  So, if you know 4X5 = 20, you automatically then know that 5X4 = 20.  This means that there is no need to learn the 12 times table because if you know the others, you automatically know the 12s.  There are only 21 times table questions you need to actually learn – the rest you know because you’ve learnt it the other way round! 

It’s also important to know that the opposite of multiplying is dividing, so learning the division facts alongside helps enormously when applying facts to other areas of maths.  So, if we are learning that 3X4 =12, we also learn that 4X3 = 12, and 12÷4 = 3 and 12÷3=4.  That’s 4 facts for the price of 1!

Do use what you know to help you with what you don’t:

If you know your 2 times table, then double it to find the 4s.  Double that to find the 8s.  Double the 3s to find the 6s, double that to find the 12s.  Alternatively, halve the 12s to find the 6s, etc. 

Also, your child may know up to 5X something but is stuck on 7X something.  Go back to 5X and count on 2 sets to find 7 times.  So many children start from the beginning and work up. Instead, start from what they know.  They probably know 10X but find 9X hard.  Start at 10X and take away one set and you have 9X. So much quicker than counting up from 1X.

Don’t worry too much about speed:

There has always been a big emphasis on recalling times tables facts at speed.  The Year 4 test does require questions to be answered at speed.  Whilst this can be helpful, especially when using the facts to help with other areas of maths so that you can carry on with the actual problem at hand and not end up bogged down in an extra task of working out 7X6 for example, it is not the bee-all-and-end-all.  There is a move in primary education now towards slower recall because speed can create anxiety.  Not everyone’s brain works quickly, and the time pressure causes many children’s brains to shut down (and adult’s – I’ve always suffered with “maths brain”.  I need time to think).  It’s OK to have to work it out, using a time-efficient strategy (such as the ones described above). 

There are so many fun ways to learn times tables.  Have posters up (children enjoy making their own), find songs and dances online, or download or have a CD to play in the car.  Use flashcards, or find games online (there are LOADS – Google “times table games”).

Praise effort not getting things right:

The children I work with who lack confidence in their learning all have one thing in common – fear of mistakes.  This is the biggest factor holding them back.  Before they can make progress academically, they need to reach the point where they are comfortable making mistakes.  Because making mistakes is how we learn.  Mistakes are fundamental and must be celebrated.  It’s OK to get something wrong, so long as we tried, and learn from the mistake so that we can iron it out in the future.  We need to practise things.  In our world of instant gratification and short attention spans children can find it difficult if they don’t understand something, or can’t do something, straight away. 

However, nobody ever achieved anything without trying.  Behind “successful” people there is a background of hard graft, failure, and perseverance.  It is effort, practise, and learning from our mistakes that needs to be recognised and praised, more than getting something right.  For example, a child may be struggling to work out a maths question. They have tried to solve it but got the wrong answer.  A great response would be something like: “Well done for trying that.  We have learnt that that isn’t the answer so let’s try another way.”  As the inventor of the light bulb, Thomas Edison said, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”  Each way that didn’t work, was part of his path to learning what did work.

Have fun:

We learn best when things are enjoyable.  If your child is tired after school and needs some downtime, then this isn’t the best time to practise spellings, times tables, or reading.  Find a time when they are rested and ready to learn for homework tasks.  If it’s not happening that day, don’t force it.  There’s always tomorrow.

We learn all the time from life in general.  Get your child involved in the housework (pairing up socks is a great maths activity for younger children), cooking, shopping, etc.  They love it and it doesn’t feel like a chore to them!  There is maths and English to be practised all around us just from doing day-to-day things. 

Go to the library, museum, park, a walk in the woods…  Your child will be soaking up all sorts of information, such as: learning to cross the road safely; how to behave in public; finding out about cultures from the past and present; different plants and animals; how keeping fit helps us feel good, to name just a few.  I learnt where places are in the country by watching the football results on a Saturday afternoon (“Mum, where’s Bolton?”) and I also remember sounding out the word “fog” when watching the weather forecast.  Learning can happen anywhere, anytime.

If your child needs further help with their schoolwork, do get in touch to see how I can help.

The post What Can I Do To Help My Child With Their Learning? appeared first on Karen Lander - The Top Cat Tutor.