Family math night helps parents participate in their child’s education 

Encouraging parents to become actively engaged in their child’s education means a lot to Fort Plain Jr./Sr. High School math teacher Susan Summerfield. To help the process, Mrs. Summerfield held her ninth consecutive Family Math Night on Nov. 16, where the families of her eighth grade students joined in solving logic puzzles and playing math-related games.

The event – held in the school library - attracted about 10 families and included a “treasure hunt,” where students solved math problems and deposited their answers in buckets placed around the library.

“The older kids always tell the younger kids that this is a fun night. I call some of the parents before the event and send home flyers during our open house,” Mrs. Summerfield said. “It’s important for parents to be actively involved in their children’s education. Even if they can’t help with eighth grade algebra problems, they can still help with the facts.”

A 2008 study conducted by the University of New Hampshire found that students perform better in school when their parents are actively involved in their education. The researchers found that parental effort is consistently associated with higher levels of achievement

Mrs. Summerfield said at the end of the night, she sent games, work sheets and other activities home with parents. She also charged the kids with drawing a likeness of themselves on a poster hanging in her room and asked them to draw how math makes them feel.

“Kids can be more successful in life if they understand math,” she said. “Getting the parents involved helps the kids not just understand math better but also helps to get them do their homework.”