From early March (hopefully 8 March) children will be heading back off into school for some proper face to face teaching (I can hear the screams of delight from parents and children all around England already: Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will be setting their dates for the kids to return to schools). Whilst getting back into education is going to beneficial for everybody, it won’t be the same as before the Covid pandemic, with social distancing still in play and some secondary schools (high schools) requiring the children to wear face masks all day.
With over a year of no education, interrupted education and home schooling a lot of children are going to be behind in their education and not at the level they should be. Catching up is going to be a problem with discussions at government level still being had about extending school hours or shorter holidays and summer schools. I’m really not sure what the best way forward is but, in the meantime, you can help them with at them at home as best you can to help them achieve their goals.
In our house we have been enjoying using Carol Vorderman’s Help Your Kids with Maths with the eldest, who is now in high school, and to some extent with her younger sister. It has been a lot of use for her but more so for us adults in helping us teach the concepts of her maths work. I was taught a different way than she is in school today and it has been a massive help in learning the way she is taught now, for me and her. The book is laid out very well and so simple to use. With that in mind and the youngest (who is in primary school) working on her times tables, we decided to invest in Help Your Kids with Times Tables, also by Carol Vorderman.
As most people will know, Carol Vorderman, the much-loved maths wizard who co-hosted the popular television show Countdown for 26 years, is a wiz when it comes to numbers and maths. She is also the author of several educational books and is the UK’s bestselling educational author. She has created a series of books as well as her The Math Factor website that will be a massive help to parents and children that will be of an immense help in assisting children and their adult guides understand maths problems. Her Help Your Kids with … series of books are reference books that encourage children, teenagers and their parents to work together, giving step-by-step instructions on different maths problems and all with a visual approach.
Help Your Kids with Times Tables is a reference / resource book, that supports the National Curriculum, for use by parents and carers to help their children (aged 5 to 11) with their times tables. It is book for Key Stage 1 (Years 1 & 2, 5-7 years old) and Key Stage 2 (Years 3-6, 7-11 years old).
When I was at school, I learnt my 1 to 12 times tables by having to write them down every day and reciting them to learn them. Whilst this book does have the times tables printed in it, it is so much more than that giving maths problems and games to solve so the kids can really get to grips with how the numbers are working and learn more than just reciting numbers. It is a unique step-by-step visual guide with practice questions., all presented in a fun and easy to read way.
The book is split into four sections:
- Easy Peasy Times Tables
- Tricky Times Tables
- Times Tables Practice
- More Times Tables Practice
Easy Peasy Times Tables is an introduction into numbers and times tables with hints and tips for parents (raiding the piggy bank to practice using real money for example).
Tricky Times Tables covers the 0-12 times tables, has a times tables quiz, looks at long multiplication (very useful for kids and their times tables), window-frame multiplication (another way to multiply long numbers), long division, it has a times tables grid (a quick and easy way to find the answer to a multiplication question using a 12×12 grid, a glossary of maths terms, and answers to any questions throughout the chapter.
Times Tables Practice allows readers to practice their times tables, from the 2 times table to mixed tables.
More Times Tables Practice is more practice with speed trials to test not only how much you have learned but how fast your recall is.
As the kids work through the book, there are hints and tips for parents to make it much more interesting and practical, with a lot of the questions and problems relating to real-life, everyday maths problems (counting money, working out how much you will be paid if you do x, y, z).
The book is very visual and is not laid out as you would expect a maths textbook to be, the questions are laid out in topics, are colourful and relate to items as well as numbers (making it an excellent introduction to algebra as well).
For anybody struggling with their times tables, just wants extra help or a bit of practice, Help Your Kids with Times Tables is an excellent resource book. As the kids work through it, they will be become much more confident with their times tables which will help with all their maths work at school and at home. Once they have learned their times tables, maths becomes much more accessible and will not seem like such a daunting task.
This is a fantastic resource book. It not only shows the times tables from 1 to 12 but shows how to use them in everyday situations and has plenty of fun questions that you can practice with along the way. It really is a superb book for children and their parents or carers to help steer them in the right direction, supporting their schoolwork in a fun and easy to understand way. With the help of the visuals along the way it really makes it easy for kids to see and work out the problems, helping them know their times tables quickly.
If you are looking for ways to support your children with their homeschooling or homework once they go back to school, then I can highly recommend Help Your Kids with Times Tables and the rest of the Help Your Kids with … series.
Rating: 5/5
RRP: £14.99
Available to buy from Amazon here.
