Having math problems? No matter if you're a teacher or a student, math can be a difficult subject to tackle.
As a teacher, it's challenging to find various ways to explain math concepts to appeal to different learning styles in your students. Plus, there's always that question looming: "When am I ever going to use math in real life?" Finding practical application of math concepts takes time, energy, and effort, but the reward is often that students connect with the lesson better.
As a student, it's a feeling of being lost at sea. Because math concepts build upon one another, the second you're lost on one concept, then you feel lost on everything after it. Repeating the concept isn't the automatic answer. Many try coming at math from a different angle. Teachers or tutors can help with this, but students can also be resourceful by finding help online.
Here are some great places to find online math helps (for teachers and students):
Khanacademy.org – Find thousands of free videos that explain math concepts from ratios and word problems to functions and complex numbers! Pick what you want to learn, then watch.
Freemathhelp.com – Look for help with collection of online math practice lessons by grade (from algebra to geometry) and a handy discussion board to talk to others when you get stuck.
Algebrahelp.com – Check out algebra lessons, handy calculator converters, worksheets, and other algebra resources! From basics to graphing, find study tips to help you conquer algebra.
Too often with math, both teachers and students just want to find the answer and move on to the next thing. It's about the destination and not the journey, for some. In the struggle of the journey, more is learned than just writing in the right answer. The beauty in arriving at the correct answer is more appreciated when you see all the hard work it took to get there!
Remember, there are multiple ways to arrive at a math answer. Like music, math is a symphony of numbers to be explored and developed. Be encouraged to travel the path of math discovery-perseverance and "working the problem" teaches way more than algebra or fractions ever will.
What helpful tips do you have for learning or teaching math concepts? Share with us!