Many children face challenges in math, but with the right support, every student can grow their skills and confidence. Keep reading to learn more about math help resources that can support children.
One of the most common forms of math help is tutoring, which can be conducted in one-on-one or group sessions and either in-person or online. Then there are math programs, which can also be in-person or online, and they involve students following set lesson plans. Last but not least, one of the most popular types of math help right now is math game-based learning. Game-based learning is designed to make math fun while helping students develop math confidence and improve their math skills. Prodigy is a prime example of a standards-aligned math game that is both educational and engaging.
With so many types of math help out there, choosing the right one for your child can be difficult. That’s why we’re here to help. We want to make it easier on you by outlining and describing a few of the most common types of math help for students of all ages. Continue reading to learn more about three popular math resources for parents.
As a parent, it’s natural to want to help your child when they’re struggling with math homework. Your support shows care and encouragement, which can go a long way in building their confidence. At the same time, many parents have busy schedules and may find it hard to carve out time to help with homework regularly. Plus, let’s face it, math can be challenging, especially as word problems and concepts become more complex over the years. Even if you do have the time, you might feel unsure about how to explain certain topics or solve problems using the methods your child is learning at school. That’s completely understandable.
The good news is, you don’t have to do it all alone! Many parents choose to explore additional math help options, like tutoring, learning programs, or interactive math games, which are explained further below and can offer the support a child needs in a fun and effective way.
Hiring a math tutor is another option that parents can leverage if their child needs math help. Tutoring can be conducted in-person or online and typically provides students with one-on-one attention. Experienced tutors will adapt their teaching styles and personalize their lesson plans to meet the needs and match the learning pace of the student. This allows them to address the specific areas that the student is struggling with and work alongside them to improve their math skills.
Although there are many benefits of hiring a math tutor, doing so may also present a few challenges. Namely, hiring a math tutor for your child can be costly. The average cost of a math tutor is approximately $40 USD per hour. That said, this number does vary depending on your location, the level of tutoring required, and how experienced the tutor is. Further, finding a tutor that is the right fit for your child, as well as the logistics of planning tutoring sessions (especially in-person sessions), can be difficult.
One last form of math help that is designed to help struggling students is math software. Math software in the form of online math programs and online math game-based learning can be instrumental in improving your child’s math skills. Oftentimes, these options are less expensive than traditional forms of learning, such as tutoring, and may even be free in some cases. In addition, math games typically consist of fun math activities, which your child might find more engaging and motivating. Math software is also convenient, as online math games can be played anytime, anywhere, and on a range of devices.
Let’s take Prodigy as an example. Prodigy makes it both easy and exciting to learn math online. Prodigy is an adaptive online math game that is completely aligned with state standards. . How it works is as follows: When your child logs on, they will be immediately immersed in a role-playing game that requires them to participate in math duels against in-game characters. To win, they must correctly answer the math problems presented to them. The platform is designed for students between the first grade and the eighth grade, which means that whether you’re looking for math manipulatives for your third grader or math puzzles for your seventh grader, Prodigy can help. You can find a complete list of the best math apps for kids here.
If you’ve decided to homeschool your child, then congratulations on taking this big step! While it might seem daunting, there are tons of resources that can help you. One of the easiest and most effective resources that homeschooled math students can leverage is math software. Math software in the form of math games is designed to suit students of all ages, abilities, and learning styles. Plus, they are known to be fun and engaging-but don’t take our word for it. Studies have shown that Prodigy’s online math game has been proven to considerably improve enjoyment among students who had previously cited low math enjoyment. Lastly, if you’re homeschooling, selecting online games that match your homeschool math curriculum is key. Programs like Prodigy can be a great fit, offering engaging, standards-aligned math practice that reinforces what your child is learning at home.
Now that you know a little bit more about the math help options available to you and your child, we’re going to dive deeper into an important area of math help: mathematics game-based learning.
If your child is struggling with math, whether they’re in the first grade, fourth grade, or eighth grade, Prodigy can help. Prodigy is one of the leading online math games for a reason. It is fun, standards-aligned, and offers a personalized learning experience. The game uses adaptive learning and differentiated instruction principles to adjust to the needs and abilities of each user.
At the end of the day, Prodigy makes math learning more accessible and convenient than ever before while being an effective platform that improves the math skills of its users. For instance, students who used Prodigy the most saw up to 5x greater improvement in math. Students at Clifton Public Schools in New Jersey mastered 68% more math skills per month when using Prodigy in the year 2019-2020 compared to the year 2018-2019. Finally, when compared to traditional instruction, digital game-based learning has been shown to be more effective in improving the mathematical learning of students.
So, what are you waiting for? Sign up for Prodigy today and get the math help your child deserves!
