Mathematics is the study of numbers, measurements and space, it has an indispensable role to play in our lives, and a lot of us are left indisposed to it if we can’t get our heads around it. Mathematics is a Greek word which means the tendency to learn and encompasses multiple branches of study that include algebra, geometry and numbers.
Maths has seeped into vital aspects of personal life and everyday matters like cooking, time tracking, and driving, as well as professional life with engineering, finance, accounting, software and banking. Maths lays bare the truths this world has to offer, it is a universal language, and one that can prove a little difficult to grasp, especially during formative primary school years.
Why is Maths So Important?
Maths plays a significant role in all our lives, we apply it without noticing, and those who believe otherwise are a little far from the truth. We don’t even realise when we apply maths for carrying out so many seemingly mundane tasks in our lives. Here are a few reasons maths is critical for us:
· stimulates the brain
· helps us project and plan our expenses and savings
· is used when we cook, eat, drink, medicate, exercise, measure, travel, and soon.
· improves our problem-solving skills.
· can be, and must be applied across professions.
Benefits of mathematics in life
Maths is not confined to computer games and textbooks; it has genuine consequences for our world. Maths is fundamental to scientific studies. Each discipline of science relies on mathematics as the key to its research. Mathematics enables scientists to formulate theories, quantify concepts, present conclusions, and make observations to help solve problems affecting people.
Mathematics aids analytical thinking. To solve maths problems, you collect data, disassemble it and then interconnect it to solve the problem. This helps develop your thinking ability and understanding of how things work.
Maths greatly aids the growth of your child’s personality by making your child solve actual problems that impact the community at large.
It helps people develop wisdom, fuels the speed of intuition and sharpens the mind: making your child smarter and more analytical. Without maths, it may be difficult for your child to keep up with the ever evolving world they live in.
How to get better at Maths
· Like any other aspect of life, practice makes perfect and maths is no different. If children practise maths regularly, they can surely improve to a large extent.
· Focus more than usual while studying maths; ideally, sit in a distraction-free environment.
· Create a maths dictionary for yourself and familiarise yourself with concepts
· Go through your errors and address any common mistakes you’re prone to.
· Apply your mathematical learnings to problems in daily life.
· Last but not least, don’t give up. Maths is meant to be solved, rather than be abandoned.
Ten tips to learn maths quickly.
1. Keep practising
The importance of practising maths cannot be stressed enough. Practice is the most effective way to learn a subject and improve in any discipline. If you practise maths daily, it will most certainly help you understand it better and become adept at solving problems.
Today, there are more than enough online practice sheets and workbooks available to young learners for learning this subject. For parents whose kids are in primary school, make sure your kids are completing all their homework and classwork.
Keep in touch with their maths teacher, who will be a great resource for extra practice material and personal insight. At the end of it all, just practice, practice and practice to learn maths faster, and better.
2. Recognise Your Mistakes
Often, we find ourselves repeatedly working on certain maths problems, without getting the correct answers to the question. See if this is becoming somewhat of a trend for a particular type of problem, identify your mistakes, and work towards addressing them.
Don’t assume the final answer is irrelevant if your approach is correct – that’s not right. Identify your mistakes and work towards rectifying them.
3. Understand basic mathematical concepts
We often fail to solve a maths problem because we have never really understood the concept, either when it was taught in class or at home, and sometimes the question is just hard to get around.
If the question and concept are unclear to anybody solving any problem, they are bound to get the wrong answer. To solve a maths problem correctly, you must first familiarise yourself with the concepts and then understand the question.
4. Don’t shy away from getting help when needed.
It’s totally fine to get some help when you are unable to understand a subject. This could mean not getting the concepts in the first go, or not being present when it was taught in class, etc.
Don’t get stuck in a vague situation; go out there and get the extra help you need to get you through. Here at OWIS, we encourage our students to be open, frank, and fearless, when it comes to asking their teachers for help when it is needed.
5. Concentrate and remain focused while studying maths
While trying to grasp a concept or understand a maths problem, you need to concentrate. If you are distracted and miss out on the basics, your foundation will be weak, and you will always find it hard to understand the problems related with that concept, and all other concepts that are based on it. When you concentrate, you understand the basics and build up from there.
6. Don’t skip maths classes (or any classes for that matter!)
It’s never a good idea to skip classes, especially maths. This is because concepts are interconnected in this subject, the understanding of harder and more intricate concepts depend on the basics.
If you skip one class, not only do you lose out on that key lesson, but also fail to understand every subsequent session that will follow after.
7. Revise and repeat at home.
Some of the best schools in Singapore ask children to stay in touch with what they learn at school by practising and/or revisiting their lessons at home on the same day they are taught, while fresh in their mind. Go home and go through the concepts taught in class to understand the problem better.
8. Enrol for tuitions or extra help classes
Many kids seek help beyond the classroom for certain subjects, and maths is chief among them. Don’t overthink it. Maths is a subject where extra help is commonly required and beneficial. Hire a tutor or enrol in online maths lessons.
There are multiple approaches to reaching a solution; chances are the technique you were taught wasn’t suited for your learning style. While some schools like ours gauge the learning style of children and work in accordance with that, some schools may not be able to give that extra individual attention needed. External assistance will help you.
9. Break The Question Down
If a maths problem appears difficult and you cannot solve it, break it down into smaller, easy-to-understand parts, especially for algorithm or geometry questions. Breaking it down will help you solve each part step-by-step.
10. Close any knowledge gaps
Due to the nature of this subject, a concept or topic is built on preceding knowledge. If you were unwell or missed certain classes, you must identify, correct and understand the mistakes.
Spot the gap, so you do not have trouble moving on to the subsequent topic. Close knowledge gaps, address your mistakes, and learn from them, as soon as possible. Make sure you have a solid foundation which will help you move ahead and improve.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is maths so hard?
Maths appears challenging because multiple approaches and steps exist to solve the same problem. However, with a lot of practice and breaking down questions into smaller parts, you can learn and master it.
How long does it take to learn maths?
As a rule of thumb, for each hour you spend on maths in class, you should spend 3 hours revising. So to learn maths from grade one to grade 12, you apparently need 10320 hours to learn maths.
Who invented numerals?
Decimals are the most commonly used form of numerals invented by Aryabhata, an Indian mathematician. The Egyptians were the first to invent the ciphered numeral system.
Conclusion
Here at OWIS the best international school in Singapore, we try to make maths exciting for our young learners and celebrate Maths Day annually as well. The idea is to honour the wonders that are numbers and mathematical concepts, and give our kids a platform to enjoy several maths based activities and games.
We focus on the relevance of maths for the natural world and always go that extra mile to help our students learn this subject in a smarter and more individual manner.
