Teaching Math to Preschooler 2

When I was in kindergarten, my mom hired a tuition teacher who made me do sums that looked like this:

  2347
  9382
  2906
+4759   
             

Holly molly, how I HATED math. I was a little Dragon girl then, I wanted to run and climb trees, catch bugs and scream and shout. Instead, I had to do sums.....imagine doing pages and pages of that. Thanks ma, I am allergic to numbers now.

It's not that my mom was kiasu. She couldn't teach us herself and therefore, she did what she thought was best for us. I vowed never to do the same to my own children. I never thought I would have a little math nerd for a son.
 
I brought Tiger to Eye Level the other day, just to see if he would like it. Basically, the FREE SCREENING test for his age was to see if he could write 1 2 3. Since I've never forced Tiger to write lines, he squiggled legible but fugly numbers. Alas, that meant he must start from Book One. Tracing numbers & writing lines. My allergy sky-rocketed.

"You want me to pay fees to trace 1 2 3?" 

*I didn't say it out loud la*

Instead, I asked Tiger if he would like to join the class. 

He replied, "I like math with mama only"

*Mama did imaginary Kozachok dance and backflips*

I smiled and said, "Never mind, we can write at home. Maybe when he is 5? Bye"

Like what Madam Pow Yew said, Math is magic!

It should be fun, exciting and intriguing.

What we do at home is:

Sometimes, we write/scribble

 

Sometimes, we just count

Occasionally, he uses his Logico board.

If we bring the board  to my room, he will ALWAYS ask for popcorn.

It's like the book, If You Give The Mouse A Cookie.

In this case, I gave the Tiger some Garrett Almond Popcorn

while we played with this in my room last July.

Associating popcorn with math. Genius, no?

I need a popcorn maker.

 I snapped a craft stick into two to make a "bigger/smaller than" sign

I recently purchase some magnetic numbers from ELC during its member sale

but I needed a sorter...tadaaaaa

                     category box              +      magnetic letters

Tiger was over the moon.

"Mama, wah....so nice!"

  

 Never be afraid to teach new math concepts.

They think it's a game!

 

 Something for Teacher Mama.

After he completes a worksheet, he gets either a stamp

or a sticker.

Not like I get to stamp because Tiger will do it himself but

ain't that the best part about homeschooling?

Our goodies from Bookxcess!

I really like this book Math Wizardry by Kenda & Williams

(ISBN-13: 978-0-7641-4176-8)

For example, her guidelines for young math wizards are:

• Make math hands-on
• Take math outside
• Take math on a vacation
• Encourage kids to keep a sketchbook/observation notebook
• Make charts/graphs with your children
• Encourage an interest in architecture
• Keep sports stat
• Play with codes
• Take math into the kitchen
• Make math a holiday event
• Don't step in too fast
• Don't be reluctant to expose children to difficult concepts

I feel like I can teach math when I look at her guidelines. Haha! Very much like Madam Poh Yew :)

Only rm 17.90 from Bookxcess! 

Product Review: SNUGG Ipad Mini Cover

Anybody with kids know that a good tablet/phone cover is essential.

Otherwise you may have to buy a new tablet every few weeks.

I have a friend who used a cheapskate cover from the pasar malam
and when her son decided to test if his Ipad can defy gravity...sigh...R.I.P.

My Tiger boy is not volatile, so his iPad ONE is still functional.

That's the thing about Apple products, they really last.

So it only makes sense to protect your device with a great cover.

Now, I was expecting a new iPad mini from hubby's supplier.

So, when this lovely purple Snugg arrived, I called hubs,
"Hey, where is my ipad mini?"

"Oh, that. I forgot to tell you that the supplier changed the target.
It seems we cannot get the iPad mini."

""What?? WTF? I already asked people for a Snugg.
It's gorgeous. And purple. So, what am I going to use it for? A wallet?"
*cries*

This is the model that I received
Snugg iPad mini Executive Case Cover and Flip Stand in Purple Leather


 See?
I was already thinking about going out with my credit cards
all 'snuggly' in it

There is also a handy spot for your stylus.
I intended to keep my pen there because I tend to lose it in my bag.


You can also keep a small book or a wad of cash in it.
 

I was very sad to let my lovely purple Snugg go.
But the nice poeple from Snugg shouldn't have to wait for a review.

So, I passed it to my friend, PK and asked her for an honest opinion.

Since she didn't get the product directly from Snugg, her review would not be biased.
Besides. mothers and children are the best reviewers.
We are the shrewdest people okay?

Take diapers for example:
We know every different brands, their absorption power,
night use, day use, pants.
We are all pseudo-professors in many subjects.
Don't play play.

Btw, this woman's got TWO iPad minis.
If that doesn't make her an expert, the fact that one is a fake cover
and the other a branded one will probably impress you.

COVER NUMBER 1:

•An imitation product bought from taobao at only RM15

•Bought this slim design as a result of strong influence by the apple original smart cover and easy to carry around

•Chose black color for easy maintenance as the original iPad2 bright orange smart cover that I have got stained easily

•However, as you can see, the threads are coming off though hardly used.

 COVER NUMBER 2

•Got a 2nd iPad  mini  and a friend of mine introduced a branded cover to me

•Bought it at Low Yat for at RM80

•My daughter was the one who chose this baby blue as she is a big fan of BLUE~~~~

•The quality is quite solid

• The overall quality is superior to my previous covers. The material is very durable and the workmanship is excellent.
• This design is excellent for children in terms of protecting it as children tends to drop the tab easily (my iPad2 is broken as my daughter dropped it even though it was covered with the original iPad cover)
• It is also handy for people in sales to use as a namecard holder as well.
• The cover is magnetic, hence it closes neatly. 
• Pleasantly surprised that the cover is somewhat like the original Apple smart cover with auto on/off function
• And it comes with life time guarantee after you registered your purchase online
• The only complaint I have is it is a little bit bulky for me to keep in my hand bag.

PK also sent me this when I asked about the spaces for volume and power button.
"Easy access," she replied.

Thank you, PK for your excellent feedback.
When I finally win my wrangle against hubby's supplier,
I am going to buy a Snugg for myself.

 Snugg manufacture and sell high quality premium cases for the 
latest and top devices on the market such as the iPad, iPhone and Nexus products. 
 They are platinum sellers on the Amazon marketplace and 
as a result we supply cases to over 200 countries worldwide. 
We also have a physical presence in 8 countries and to date have sold over a million cases.

For the design reviewed, they  have it 14 different colours
You can get your from
Amazon
The Snugg
ipmart.com.my (local)

The "Yes" Mom

"Can't you ask her to sit down?" 

"Aren't you going to scold her?"

"If she's my kid, I am going to whack her",

said my mother and brothers. My darling dad just shook his head.

Obviously the person they were berating was me and the subject of their despair was Dragon girl.

I just shrugged, "That's just who she is and she wouldn't understand even if I beat her. Watch this,"
I grabbed hold of my daughter to keep her still for 2 seconds. She started wriggling, kicking and shouting. I looked over at my mom and said, "See? You come and try la"

After 5 minutes of going nuts, I asked for a high chair, sat her down and fed her. In 15 minutes, she went bonkers again. Usually, I will just let her be but this time, I was a little apprehensive because it was a steamboat restaurant. But it was one of those classier ones with clean floors and electrical stove. Still,  we all ate quickly and left.

Oh, Dragon girl. What am I going to do with you?

I heard all children who are born in the year of Dragon are like this. 

Haha, blame the zodiac. How professional!

 

I do not hit my kids. I try not to even scold or yell unless they:

1. Attempt to injure themselves. Like trying to leap of the first floor or play with fire.

2. Attempt to cause harm to others. No hitting/biting other children.

3. Think they can get away with bad attitude such as shouting at elders or kicking doors.

**Fighting among themselves are allowed as long as nobody gets killed. Bones can be mended. Wounds can be cleaned.

Coming back to my boogie woogie girl. 

That her on the stage, dancing for everyone.

Fell of the stage once and didn't even flinch. 

She just hopped right back on and continued dancing and running.

Mama is her biggest fan

I already know she will need lots of outdoor time. Probably taekwondo, ballet, gymnastics, rock climbing & drama classes just to burn off all that excess energy.

And I know she doesn't like studying like her brother. Despite being exposed to so many letters, numbers, shapes, etc......she just wants to play and play she will.

I have no expectations for her to meet. Neither do I want to force her to perform academically. She will be who she is and we will let her creativity and stubbornness shine. This one will not be a typical grade A student. She will be the one giving the teacher a headache, not doing homework, wearing nail polish, skipping classes, etc. I can feel it already.

She will always be my sweetheart and papa's little girl.

I cannot imagine how anyone can hurt little girls.

They are just so, so precious.

 

She is oh-so-brave, she scares me.

Never one to back down from a fight.

Ain't afraid of heights

Attempts anything without a second thought,

Not frightened of strangers, animals or the dark.

Loves the stage and attention.

Anything Tiger can do, she will try to do it better.

 I choose to believe that she is meant for big things.

And who am I to tell her no?

So, let me be the 'yes' mom.

Go, be fearless. Do your thing.

I will right behind you, guiding and supporting you.