Growing with Mathematics
Dear Parents/ Guardians:
This year I will be helping your child to develop essential math skills through the Growing with Mathematics Curriculum. The Growing with Mathematics Program is aligned with the current national and state curriculum standards and developmental guidelines. The content of this program supports the guidelines for the NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) as well as, (NAEYC) which is the National Association for the Education of Young Children. There are several benefits to using the Growing with Mathematics Program such as: it promotes social development as well as provides opportunities for physical, language and cognitive development.
Social: Growing with Mathematics includes activities for large groups and smaller groups. However, I will be working with the children in a smaller group setting. This will be helpful for students that may be shy or have difficulty participating in larger group settings. Overall, the program encourages communication and interaction with peers or teachers which is important for social development.
Physical: Growing with Mathematics includes a CD with songs for each topic. The songs help keep the students engaged by allowing them to move and sing while they learn. It encourages finger play using fine motor skills, and also forms of whole body movement which is important for gross motor development, or the strengthening of the big muscles used for running, jumping, etc.
Language: The program promotes language development through song and discussion. Each topic has a short story to reinforce the lesson. Growing with Mathematics helps to expand their vocabulary by using different words to describe things. For example, A student may say that a line is little or skinny, but will also learn that it can be described as narrow or thin.
Cognitive: “Growing with Mathematics facilitates play that will develop children’s thinking, reasoning, decision-making and problem solving abilities.” Students are asked questions and that encourage them to think about how a problem will be solved.
Newsletter: There will be a newsletter sent home for every topic. The newsletter will let parents/guardians know what we will be working on. The newsletter will also include tips on activities that can be done at home to reinforce what your child has learned at school. On some occasions, there may be items included with the newsletter that you and your child can work on together. The timeframe for each topic may vary. Growing with Mathematics may suggest a topic be covered for one week, but it may be necessary to stay on that topic longer.
Sincerely,
Ms. Wheeler