Mar 1, 2013 by Yolanda Fontanez-Coleman | Math, Parent Blogs
Yesterday while getting dinner ready, my 9 year old had his whiney voice turned up high! He was stressing over his math homework. Not a common stress for him because he normally does well in math. But when you add new material his stress level increases and down goes his confidence level. The cause of such stress was adding fractions with unlike denominators. Just writing this stresses me out!
I think that I am fairly intelligent however I went online (www.khanacademy.com) to refresh my abilities with this wordy math challenge. Really? – adding fractions with unlike fractions. ..ugh! As I see it I had two issues: 1.Helping him understand the math challenge and 2. Boosting his confidence.
Obviously helping him with the math was going to boost his confidence. It was simple, the math and the boosting; all he needed was my TIME! And that is what I gave him..time! I sat with my 9 year old on the floor with a large dry erase board and the worksheet sent home from school. The worksheet was a challenge sheet but apparently there were 2 levels. My son had been given the easier of the 2 levels with the following statement from his teacher, “You are not ready for the harder one“. That statement was like a punch in the stomach for my anxious, highly competitive and extremely sensitive child. With his head held low he shared with me this comment from his teacher. This was my reaction and the exact words that I shared with my son, “No one tells my son that he can’t do something and don’t you ever believe that from anyone even people you admire!” He was shocked by my visceral reaction and I can tell a little excited. We searched for the more challenging worksheet online and completed that one with ease after the initial sheet was completed.
He was so proud of himself as I was too! This morning when I asked him if he wanted to practice a few more math problems after school he jumped out of bed with excitement! My message to teachers, please do NOT crush a kid’s spirit and confidence with such hard words like, ““You are not ready for the harder one“.
Have you ever had a similar experience with a classroom teacher? Please share your stories us!
Blog submitted by a parent of a 9 year old and 4 year old in Glenside, PA