Thank you, Mathnasium of Buffalo Grove, for letting us try your services so we can understand the difference
Math was never my favorite subject growing up, but I do remember spending hours working on my algebra and geometry homework wishing for it to disappear. I would gladly exchange a math textbook for a history homework any day. With my children, I did my very best to stay clear of math homework, but when the avoidance was no longer an option, I discovered that I understand very little in modern elementary school math and no help to my children.
Does Your Child Do Well in School?
While my 10-year old daughter has some issues concentrating and getting specific tasks done, she seemed to do well in math. Or at least that’s what I thought since her grades would vary between A and B. She would usually get her homework done before I get home from work and if I ever ask, she would always tell me that everything is an O.K.
Don’t guess – Ask!
Based on her grades I even dared to think that she was exceeding at math. However, when I asked her one day how she felt about her math abilities – she felt that she struggled with math.
I was shocked: when I struggled with math my grades were rarely above C – what am I missing? Since this question came up after we started going to the Mathnasium of Buffalo Grove, I shared my confusion with Julie Crawford, Center Director of Mathnasium of Buffalo Grove:
Confidence is KEY! We often tell parents that we will spend the first 4-6 weeks with their student building their confidence muscle. This means that they would have the confidence to ask questions, get a problem wrong and not feel defeated, persist at a problem using previous knowledge to guide them, and believe that they are a “math kid!” Once this door is open, they stop doubting their ability in math, and they can then go to work building their math problem-solving toolbox. 
Good Grades in Math is All I Want!
But don’t good grades tell the story? Apparently not, since my daughter was anxious about her tests. “Doing “ok” or even well in school still leaves the potential for gaps in learning mastery. For example, if your child regularly gets an 80-90% on their Math tests, they are still missing 10-20% of the material – and this is when they have just had specific instruction for the concept. This adds up over time.
Julie is telling us more: “Our goal is to support math learning so that the student masters or fully understands both the concept and process. When this is the case, they have internalized the concept and can leverage that learning into the next layer. It’s crucial to build that stable foundation as students encounters more complex problems.”
From B+ to A
My girl keeps telling me how much she loves going to the Mathnasium of Buffalo Grove, and I keep asking her WHY? She insists it helps her be better at math. According to her, now she knows that she did well on a test when she turns it in instead of when she gets her graded work back.
We began asking our daughters how they thought they did on a test. Then we compared those expectations to the actual result. The few times they were way off, they reflected on it to see where they went wrong.
I think that’s so neat the way your daughter knows after she has finished her work that she did a good job! What a great place to be! Math can be tough and I’m so glad to see resources like this.
Math was my strongest subject in school but boy has it changed. Mathnasium sounds like a great program.
It’s fantastic that there is a place to go to gain more confidence in their math skills! I wish I had more options like Mathnasium available to me when I was in school.
My youngest doesn’t get grades yet, but she’s doing very well in school. She’s one of the top in her class. My oldest does get grades, and it’s mainly a’s and b’s with maybe one c. I always say as long as they’re trying and doing well, that’s all that matters.
That;s great! We homeschool but this sounds like a great resource for kids to learn.