"I Hate Math" — How to Teach Math-Averse Students
By Mara Dauber, Academic Coach
Math is quite possibly the most infamous school subject. A common criticism is that math is disconnected from the real world. Students often struggle to find connections between what they're expected to learn in class and their day-to-day lives. From this perspective, it makes sense that putting effort into math learning would feel like more of a hassle than it is worth.
However, as any math lover knows, math is everywhere! More than that, it can be incredibly engaging and even fun. By making small changes to the way we teach math, we may be able to shift student perspectives, and ultimately their learning, when it comes to math. It can feel challenging or even overwhelming to make changes to the way you teach, especially given the constraints of assigned curricula and pressures of student testing.
Here are some seeds for inspiration and ideas on where to start:
1. Make math more connected
Make connections to your students’ lived experiences. Wondering where to start with this? Take a look at the field of ethnomathematics. Ethnomathematics is a term that refers to mathematics curricula that reflect culturally diverse sets of math knowledge. Ethnomathematics curricula recognize that math knowledge exists in myriad cultures and histories.
Taking this approach, mathematical thinking is made visible in areas like nature, art, design, fashion, and construction around the world. For inspiration, check out this teaching program designed entirely around ethnomathematics.
2. Make math more accessible
Part of what makes math difficult for many students is its abstract nature. It is easy to get lost in numbers and equations.
Use manipulatives and other tools to make math visual and kinesthetic. This provides students with opportunities to engage their senses and build more dynamic understandings of what numbers represent.
You can incorporate manipulatives directly into a lesson and make them accessible to students in the classroom. They can also be used as optional tools to support understanding as students work through problems on their own.
3. Make math social
Increase one-on-one and small group work. While it is common to think of learning as something isolated, something that happens within one’s own brain, learning is a social endeavor.
Teachers, pair or group students for activities whenever possible (parents, consider our small group classes). This provides students with opportunities to learn new strategies from and engage in problem-solving with their peers. This strategy can also take some pressure off of students who do not believe in their potential as math learners as they are not all on their own in this work.
4. Make math a game
Consider making your math lessons more like playtime. More than other school subjects, math is about puzzles. Lean into this. This can be through the incorporation of math board and card games or through interactive work.
Here’s an example from a classroom I recently visited. A wiggly group of second graders was having a difficult time sitting still enough to take in the instructions for upcoming small group work. Rather than push through an overwhelmingly distracted group, the teacher shifted gears. She proposed a group story problem activity. Students were instructed to go outside and run around the building anywhere from one to five times. When they returned, they completed and solved a story problem, crafted by their teacher, related to this activity.
Not only did this activity help students manage their energy, but it kept the entire group engaged from start to finish - and on a word problem, no less! Math was fun!