There was a time when I believed good teaching meant knowing all of the answers. Now I would argue that good teaching is asking the right questions. This shift in thinking has influenced my responses to parents when I am posed with questions about how parents can support their children in learning mathematics at home.

The way mathematics is taught has changed since many parents have finished school. Sometimes the different approaches used in today’s classrooms can make parents feel reluctant to support mathematics learning at home. I believe that taking a questioning stance towards the learning of mathematics helps to eliminate some of the challenges. Questioning is important because it helps children make their own connections between ideas.

Open Questions – Open questions are questions that encourage a variety of responses. Open questions build self-confidence and allow children to respond at their level of development. Consider “What is 4 + 6” (closed question) versus “Is there another way to make 10?” (open question).

Wait Time – Waiting a few extra seconds allows children to formulate their thoughts into words. Wait time can be especially beneficial for less confident learners.

Pose Questions that Actually Need to be Answered – Rhetorical questions like “Doesn’t a triangle have three sides?” provides students with an answer without allowing them to engage in their own reasoning. 

(Ideas taken from http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/literacynumeracy/inspire/research/CBS_AskingEffectiveQuestions.pdf)

Here are some tips for mathematical learning at home:

Tips for math K to gr. 3:

http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/abc123/eng/tips/mathkto3.html

Tips for math Gr. 4-6

http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/abc123/eng/tips/math4to6.html

Tips for math Gr. 7-12

http://oame.on.ca/mathies/files/Partnering%20with%20your%20teen.pdf