Easing the transition to Common Core: what you can do at home

During the school year, children and teachers will be straddling the old way of learning and teaching and Common Core. Since children will be learning in a more “project-based”, will be radically different from what they are doing now. Here are some tips to help your child to the Common Core way of learning.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS/LITERACY

• Read more non-fiction texts to your children
• Find and discuss books focused on “how things work” and why
• Stock your child’s library with easy to read books and more challenging books that you can read together.
• Ask for evidence everyday discussions; read books with your child and discuss and make predictions about what happens next.
• Encourage writing at home: Write books together using evidence and detail. Review writing samples.
• Read frequently with young children, play rhyming games and word games to increase vocabulary.

MATHEMATICS

• Understand what concepts your child struggles with and how that will affect learning future concepts down the road. If your child needs help, advocate for support.
• Understand the objectives that your child is learning at his/her grade level.
• Encourage children to know, understand and memorized math facts, know the necessary fluencies and prioritize learning what your child finds difficult.
• Review homework: Ask questions to see whether your child understands the “why” as well as “what” the answer is.
• Ask you child to do the math that comes up in daily life. For example, “We are making 2 batches of brownies. Each batch needs 1 egg. How many eggs do we need for the two batches?”