Staff and students from Good Shepherd Primary School Hoxton Park gathered in Term 2 to show parents that Maths need no longer be feared.
The school’s maths showcase aimed to help students practice articulating Mathematical concepts and encourage parents to get involved in their children’s learning.
Each grade decorated a table to display what they were studying in class, and select students answered parent questions and explained key principles and methodologies using posters and props.
Maths Coordinator Leanne Villareal said many parents feel a level of discomfort around maths, in part because they question their skills or haven’t learned the same ways of working through problems as their children.
She said the showcase was about getting them to have a go and engage with the subject.
“We have a wonderful parent community – they’re involved in reading, they’re involved in prayer…(but) I think there’s a stigma around maths,” she said.
“We thought a great way to get parents involved in their children’s learning – to not have the teachers presenting, but the kids themselves.”
Parent Julie Pham welcomed the chance to hear directly from her daughter Taylor and her classmates about how their learning is progressing.
“Maths is used every day in society, in adding, thinking, working out and solving problems,” she said.
“It’s great to hear about what the kids are learning and see the way they present themselves and their confidence.”
Taylor, who was presenting on the Read, Organise, Solve and Evaluate (ROSE) strategy at the Year 3 display, said she was sure she’d use Maths in the future because it solves so many different types of problems.
“You can have fun with it,” she said. “It’s not boring, it’s actually thinking and making your brain work.”