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Online Math Games for Kindergarten Help Students Achieve Common Core State Standards

Posted On : Jan-25-2012 | seen (539) times | Article Word Count : 564 |

Kindergarten children come to school with varying degrees of readiness for learning number concepts. With the fairly short attention span of young children, keeping them engaged in learning experiences requires a teacher to approach the ideas
Kindergarten children come to school with varying degrees of readiness for learning number concepts. With the fairly short attention span of young children, keeping them engaged in learning experiences requires a teacher to approach the ideas in various ways and to adjust to the level of comprehension for each child. Online math games for kindergarten are one tool that can help to reinforce the concepts taught in class, deepen children’s understanding and build fluency.

Young children need many concrete learning experiences in order to build a strong foundation for the challenging curriculum build on common core state standards. The common core standards are designed to prepare students for higher education and for jobs in an increasingly complex and challenging work world. A teacher needs every tool possible to support the learning of kindergarten students so they will be ready and eager to move on to further academic adventures.

Children begin learning about math by manipulating objects, learning to count and regroup them in various ways. Manipulatives like the math rack, number line and hundreds chart build on the early learning experiences. Eventually, students will move from these concrete materials to more abstract learning. Making this transition can be particularly challenging.

Online math games for kindergarten that show use of virtual manipulatives similar to the ones children use in the classroom are one tool that can ease this transition. Once children are familiar with the equipment used to teach math concepts, they can more readily grasp the idea of the games. Then they continue play using the virtual manipulatives to deepen their understanding of number and sequence, getting ready to perform math operations.

Practice is necessary so that students thoroughly master the foundation concepts before trying to move on to the next steps. In order to keep children engaged and eager to learn, a variety of approaches is needed. Classroom math games that reinforce and deepen concepts can be followed up by online kindergarten math games that will develop fluency and competence.

Math rack practice, for example, begins with learning to manipulate the device. Then students begin producing patterns that they are shown. Once they learn to do this, the children find the appropriate numeral to represent the pattern. Online math games for kindergarten that adjust to a child’s level of understanding are particularly helpful in keeping each student working at her optimal learning level.

A system of math games that provides real-time feedback to the teacher is useful in determining what interventions are needed by students who may be struggling with a particular concept or need additional practice before moving on to the next step.

Another advantage of online math games is that they can be used at home, and parents can see how the child is progressing. Students can maintain and even deepen their competence by using the games at home so that they return to the classroom ready and eager to move on. They build confidence and a sense of achievement, all the while enjoying a game.

Once plenty of practice is provided, children can then move on to pencil and paper applications for the concepts they have learned. This progression from concrete to abstract representations is vital if students are to progress in their academic work. Children learn naturally from playing, and online math games for kindergarten build on their desire to achieve.

Article Source : http://www.articleseen.com/Article_Online Math Games for Kindergarten Help Students Achieve Common Core State Standards_139163.aspx

Author Resource :
Jim Wheelin writes about many different educational topics for parents, kids and teachers. He likes to build on his kids' skills with fun online math games for kindergarten. Jim also encourages other parents and teachers to test educational games such as the ones offered at http://www.dreambox.com/.

Keywords : online math games for kindergarten, online math games,

Category : Reference and Education : Reference and Education

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