Leawood

US is NOT 25th in the world in math and problem solving!

If you take a closer look at the data released by the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) you will find that the US is actually tied (with Latvia) for 28th in math and ranks 30th in problem solving.

This information is being reported in the news and you have probably seen the TV ad recently by Strong American Schools, a non-partisan public awareness and advocacy effort supported by the Gates Foundation, where it shows a boy raising all the flags of the countries that are ahead of the United States.

The ranking of 25th comes from only OECD member countries.  There are other countries that are not a member of the OECD which performed better than the United States.

This shows that the US is falling farther and farther behind the rest of the world in math, science and problem solving skills.  We need to do better to ensure our future leaders have the skills to compete with the rest of the world.  As I have told many of our parents, when your child graduates they are no longer competing for jobs with graduates from around the US, they are competing for jobs with graduates from the around the world.

This fact is specifically why my wife and I opened Math Monkey of Leawood.  I want to give our students the confidence they need to be able to go out and fight for the jobs they want.  Math and problem solving abilities are going to benefit students throughout their lifetime.  They don't have to be a statistician or get a PHD in mathematics.  What they need is the ability to look at a problem or situation, come up with the best approach to solve that problem and have the confidence to know they are correct. 

Math can be fun in any environment!

I grew up swimming competitively in southwest Missouri so when one of my parents asked if we wanted to come and play some games with the LionsGate swim team, I jumped at the chance.  We had such a wonderful time I had to share what we did.  We went to the swim practice on July 3rd and played a relay race game.  We created cards with math problems for the kids to solve.  We then tied the answers to metal washers and tossed them in the pool.  The kids solved the problems and then had to go find the answers at the bottom of the pool.  It was really fun watching the kids work together in teams.  Some teams had one person stay on the side of the pool and solve the problem while the other kids searched.  Other teams all solved the problem together and went to search for the answer. 

Each one of these teams reinforced what I believe about math.  There are many different ways to solve a math problem and I want my students to understand that and use the techniques that make the most sense to them.  Each of the teams played the game a little differently but took the approached the worked best for them.

I definitely want to thank the LionsGate swim team for allowing me to get my day off to wonderful start.  I really enjoyed watching the kids have fun while solving math problems.  We should have some pictures posted on our Leawood website soon, so check them out.  Take care.

LOT'S OF FUN AT MATH MONKEY OF LEAWOOD!!

What an amazing couple of weeks we have having around here at Math Monkey of Leawood.  It all started about two weeks ago when FOX 4 In The Morning came by our center and did two live feeds during the morning program.  It was very exciting around here and our students and parents had a great time.  If you haven't had a chance to see the segments I have linked to in on the main page of our Leawood website.

Last Saturday, May 3rd from 12-4 PM, we hosted our 1st Annual Pizza Pi contest along with A Wine Flight Bar and Bistro.  I can't tell you how much fun we had at this event.  We ended up with approximately 15 teams and a total of about 33 kids.  Each team picked their pizza and had to work through a series of math problems to figure out how much of each ingredient they needed.  Once they were done with their sheet, they went to the next station where they gathered their ingredients and built their pizza.  After they finished building their pizza they brought it to the chefs to bake and then it was on to the judges.  I can't tell you how much fun it is to see all the kids working together to solve the math problems.  Not only are they working together but they are having a great time as well.  It was also a great time for parents to hang out, visit and grab a bite to eat.  I have already talked to RJ and Sherri, owners of A Wine Flights Bar and Bistro, and we are preparing for another event in the Fall.  Stay tuned and keep checking our Math Monkey of Leawood website for more details.  If you want to see some really great pictures of the event, you can visit the Math Monkey of Leawood scrapbook.  It is definitely worth your time to see all the smiling faces.

This is definitely what we like to see, kids having fun and learning math!

Alegebra teachers have their say.

In 2006 President Bush appointed the National Advisory Panel to "...to foster greater knowledge of and improve performance in mathematics among American students..."

During the 20 months the Panel conducted a survey of 743 teachers who revealed that their student's background preparation for Algebra 1 was weak.  The teachers indicated that students need to become more prorficient with basic mathematical concepts and skills.  A sample response from a teacher was:

"Students need to be better prepared in basic math skills and not be quite so calculator dependent.  Also, more training in thinking skills."

I personally believe that students who have the ability to reason through a difficult problem, or take a situation and identify multiply ways to come to a solution, will be better prepared for their math classes in high school.  In elementary school, students need to be given the tools they need to compete, and a solid understanding of the math basics should be one of those tools.  It is very interesting to me to see these kinds of responses from teachers.  Hopefully the information in this report will make it to the appropriate people that will work to implement the suggestions.

To find more information on the report from the National Math Panel visit www.ed.gov/MathPanel.

Welcome to the Math Monkey of Leawood blog.

Hello,

My name is Chris Kuttenkuler and I am the owner of and Knowledge Center Director of Math Monkey of Leawood.  I will be updating the Math Monkey of Leawood blog with interesting information about the Kansas City area, facts about our center and what we are doing in the community.  Please check back often and feel free to add your comments.

Chris