Math has a bad reputation with too many kids, and that’s a shame. They’ll need a foundation in math to understand the modern world.
Every child needs math basics, both in preparation for everyday life and the ability, if desired, to learn advanced math. A home computer can be a terrific aid. Math “edutainment” programs for your PC combine entertainment–pictures, animated characters, sound effects, funny voices and video–with educational practice problems, quizzes and so on.
Here’s a look at some of the better math titles. Prices are the approximate amount you’ll actually pay after discounts. And note that you’ll need a CD-ROM drive to use most of them.
First, products for the youngest crowd:
– Math Rabbit Deluxe (The Learning Company, 800-227-5609, http://www.learningco.com, CD-ROM for Windows and Mac, $30) has simple games to help 3- to 7-year-olds recognize numbers, understand equalities and handle simple arithmetic. The Learning Company also sells (among many other titles) Math Munchers Deluxe (CD-ROM for Windows and Mac, $30), with an arcade-style question-and-answer game aimed at ages 5 to 9 for practice in basic arithmetic and counting money in different game scenarios.
– Franklin Learns Math (Sanctuary Woods, 800-943-3664, http://www.sanctuary.com, CD-ROM for Windows and Mac, $30) is so corny it’s cute, with the turtle from a book series wandering around with its friends in a forest and finding occasions to recognize numbers and patterns. For the littlest kids, this looks decent.
– With NumberMazeChallenge (Great Wave, 800-423-1144, http://www.greatwave.com, CD-ROM for Windows and Mac, $35), answering math questions correctly gets you through an on-screen maze. The best questions are word problems that the player must first convert into equations and then solve–a vital two-step process that very few of these programs bother to include. Great Wave says ages 5 to 12 will like this.
Some products for preteen and middle school kids:
– Math Blaster Mega Package (Davidson, 800-545-7677, http://www.education.com, CD-ROM for Windows 95 and PowerMac, $50) offers arithmetic, fractions, decimals, number patterns and estimation, with five arcade-style games and certificate printing. It adds an Internet browser, activity book and second CD-ROM with away-from-the-computer suggestions for parents.
– NFL Math (Sanctuary Woods, 800-943-3664, http://www.sanctuary.com, CD-ROM for Windows and Mac, $30) and Major League Math (CD-ROM for Windows and Mac, $35) use sports to draw younger (8 to 12) sports fans into math. The player watches 3-D graphic games and answers questions such as “If so-and-so ran 187 yards on 34 attempts, what is the average?” The answers are multiple choice. It wasn’t easy to get to the game and figure out what you’re supposed to do next, but the metaphor may be compelling for some kids.
– Math for the Real World (Davidson, 800-545-7677, http://www.education.com, CD-ROM for Windows 95 and 3.1 and Mac, $30), which is aimed at ages 10 to 14 and planned as the first in a series, puts the player into a traveling rock band. On tour, the player must calculate distances, divide dinner bills, read a map and otherwise handle 4,000 real-world problems. There are tutorials to help. If they do it all well enough, kids get to make their own music videos on screen.
Finally, some CD-ROMs for older kids:
– Davidson (800-545-7677, http://www.education.com) has a couple of solid entries with Geometry Blaster (CD-ROM for Windows and Mac, $40) and Alge-Blaster 3 (CD-ROM for Windows and Mac, $40). The algebra title is supposedly for kids 12 and up and the geometry for kids 8 and up, but I think both are pretty advanced for middle school and just fine for high school. Both titles claim to have a full year of curriculum in them and both have tutorials, definitions and record-keeping on student success.
– Algebra Smart (Princeton Review, 800-2-REVIEW, http://www.review.com, CD-ROM for Windows and Mac, $35) also has a full year in its 12 lessons, built from tutorials, drills, videos and tests. The metaphor is athletic training for the Algebra Olympics. Throw in tips about taking the SAT and progress reports, and this is a winner.
– Trig Explorer (CTC, 301-907-3955, http://www.cogtech.com, CD-ROM for Windows and Mac, $40) covers that subject from degrees to inverse functions, with tips, formulas and notes always at hand. I’m quite impressed by the way animated graphics on screen help you explore trig, such as using an on-screen “virtual” protractor to measure angles.
– Math Advantage (Aces Research, 510-683-8855, http://www.acesxprt.com, CD-ROM for Windows, $40) doesn’t bother at all with cute graphics and characters, but there’s a lot of math on this set of six CDs. You’ll find complete courses in algebra, calculus, statistics, geometry and trigonometry, each starting with a short, dry lecture followed by 10 to 20 chapters with 300 to 400 problems. The sixth CD is called “Succeed in School,” with suggestions on study and test-taking.
– StudyWorks (MathSoft, 617-577-1017, http://www.mathsoft.com, CD-ROM for Windows, $40) won’t march a student through those subjects, but it has much of the same information stored in a kind of reference book/calculator/smart scratch-paper. This program could take a kid right into college because it helps them look up formulas, then plug values into those formulas and see them solved and graphed on-screen. A Web link for discussions of math and science, a teachers’ guide and other goodies are available alongside.
