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Local elementary school to host “Monster Math” night

By DIANE TEZENO
Published: 10.29.08
Administrators at Blue Ridge Elementary School in Missouri City are transforming math into a fun-filled activity as the school hosts its 2nd Annual Monster Math Night.

The event, held from 6:30 - 8 p.m., Oct. 30, will take place in the school’s cafeteria and will feature a host of math games and activities for students and parents.

“Every month we try to have at least one parent activity and this month it is ‘Monster Math,’” said Blue Ridge Elementary School Principal Deirdre Holloway.

Students and teachers don costumes depicting a specific math skill, storybook or cartoon character.

Last year several teachers, including Antwanette Weaver, the school’s math curriculum specialist, joined with students in the festive atmosphere dressed in a variety of creative costumes ranging from Mrs. Measurement to Mathticia to Mrs. Domino.

Parents are introduced to the math curriculum in a festival type atmosphere and also are introduced to various fun-filled math strategies.

“Parents are often amazed at the things their kids can do and find it enlightening to be able to put that addition or multiplication concept into a fun activity,” said Weaver.

Students and their parents engage in a range of interactive grade-based math activities throughout the night.

“Typically people have a phobia for math and we want to help parents learn different strategies so they can work with their children so they won’t have that fear,” said Weaver.

One of the event’s most popular activities involves a math game that is a spin off of the game show “Deal or No Deal.

Overcoming student fear and disinterest in math is one of the math curriculum specialist’s greatest challenges.

“It is hard for many students to see how math relates to their everyday lives,” said Weaver.

The aim of instructors during classes and on math night is to help students to understand the relevance of math in day-to-day life.

“Just your average game playing dominos or cards, you have to use math strategies to be successful at the game,” Weaver said.

The night will feature games based on various math concepts, including addition and subtraction, multiplication and division to word problems and probability.

“Our big focus is really parent involvement and research shows that that is the key for students to be successful,” said Holloway.“We are encouraging parents to not just drop students off, but to come in and see what their child is learning so they can reinforce the concepts at home, said Holloway.

The school has hosted similar projects such as “Cat Read a Lot” a literacy night, where students wear pajamas and parents read a favorite book to them.

The school has also held a “Book Parade” where students created floats and marched in a parade around the school in celebration of reading.



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