Table Talk Math by John Stevens

A Practical Guide for Bringing Math Into Everyday Conversations

In Table Talk Math, John Stevens offers parents—and teachers—ideas for initiating authentic, math-based, everyday conversations that get kids to notice and pique their curiosity about the numbers, patterns, and equations in the world around them.

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About the Book

Exploring math with your kids can be fun. Really!

Maybe you love math. Maybe you still remember anxiety you felt as a student in math class. Either way, your kids are learning from you and deciding whether or not they are “good at” math.

How can you help ensure that your children and teens learn to love math? Talk about it! Make it fun and casual and interesting. (And please, make sure math conversations aren’t just about grades.) Bring math into your everyday conversations. It’s simple because…

Math is everywhere! From cooking (and eating) to playing games to estimating how much toilet paper is left on a roll to creating elaborate patterns with LEGO bricks, you don’t have to look far to find numbers to wonder about with your kids.

In Table Talk Math, John Stevens offers ideas for initiating authentic, math-based conversations that can benefit (and be fun for) everyone at the table–no matter how young or old. The more often you can get your kids to notice and be curious about all the numbers, patterns, and equations in the world around them, the more likely they are to start thinking about math as something that is fun, even if it isn’t always easy. And that’s when you’ll really have something to talk about.

"This is an exciting time in math education. There is practically no end to the number of resources designed to help teachers (and parents!) spark rich mathematical conversations. Yet this vast landscape can also be intimidating. Where should we begin when there is so much to choose from? What questions can we ask our students (and children) to prompt delight-filled discussions? And how should we respond to their questions and ideas in return? In Table Talk Math, John Stevens offers timely answers to these questions and more. If searching on our own through everything the Internet has to offer is like drinking water from a firehose, then Table Talk Math is John serving it up one cool, refreshing glass at a time."

– Michael Fenton

"Time spent with our children is limited, leaving us scrambling for more meaningful ways to build life-long relationships with them. As parents, we want to make the most of every opportunity, but it's tough. It's here where Table Talk Math offers simple ways for us to purposefully connect with the ones we love, but in a mathy kind of way. Through the eyes of his own childhood, John Stevens shares the personal stories that helped foster his own curiosity in the world around him and he invites you to do the same--just as his parents did for him." -

– Graham Fletcher

"John Stevens is much more than a math teacher; he's a storyteller. In Table Talk Math, he invites us into his home and shows us, through personal vignettes with his two children, how we can work math into our own everyday conversations. Enhanced with contributions from a team of math innovators and written in a refreshingly readable style, Table Talk Math give parents easy ideas for bringing math home in authentic and relevant ways."

– Jennifer Gonzalez

"How appropriate that a book designed to help parents have conversations about math with their children is written in such a conversational format. If more authors approached math in the way that John Stevens does in Table Talk Math, we might be able to begin to erase the stigma that surrounds math in our culture."

– Donna Boucher

"Table Talk Math is chock-full of stories that will make you feel like you're seated at John's table. This practical guide provides the perfect balance of accessible resources, empowering coaching, and authentic humor. Teachers and parents, get ready to pull up a chair, and invite students of all ages to join mathematical conversations that develop number sense, perseverance, and joy."

– Cathy Yenca

Details

Author: John Stevens
Genre: Teaching Methods & Materials

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