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Written by Sharra Badgley
www.thehomeschoolmarm.com/www.thehomeschoolmarm.blogspot.com
www.TOSMagazine.com
Math. It has always been the subject of dread in my life until recently. I have never fully understood my struggles in higher math and my anxiety over mathematical computations until I observed our 9-year-old daughter as she struggled with math. My daughter is an exceptional learner who has inherited my learning challenges of Gifted/ADHD. After several years of homeschooling, I observed that she could blaze through a large work of classic literature with full comprehension and understanding beyond her years. However, a page of math with more than ten problems on it would cause her to break down in tears and lay her head down in defeat. I could recall having these same experiences during my own childhood, all the way through my college years. As a Gifted/ADHD learner, our daughter was overwhelmed by the magnitude of numbers on the text pages.
At the elementary level, in our home school we have used an assortment of home school curricula, all of which have included thirty to forty problems per lesson. As classic educators, we appreciate math drills, which help cement concepts in the mind. The difficulty arose as our daughter’s sheer anxiety over math prevented her from moving forward and completing enough problems to master the concepts.
The freedom and flexibility of homeschooling have allowed us to explore many curricula and programs so that we could reach a place of success, and the use of educational apps has truly revolutionized our homeschooling. We use educational apps in conjunction with our textbooks, workbooks, and other online supplementary programs. (more…)
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