Remember that time you were sitting in class, paying attention, taking notes, working math problems and feeling great about how to do a quadratic equation? But you went to soccer practice, came home, ate dinner and then sat down to do your homework only to realize you suddenly have no idea how to work out the problems? No worries it happens to everyone. New skills take practice.

It’s back to school, the season is here. Time to pick up paperwork, download calendars, shop for notebooks and backpacks. Despite some mumbles and complaints, most kids are high energy when the new year kicks off. It’s time for a fresh start. A new beginning.

The new school year is a time to establish good homework habits and routines. It is also the time of year that many students tend to be more determined to do well, to get off to a good start, and to try and stay on top of their work. Grab a hold of this energy while you can. Make the most of it.

Seek out extra resources for help or enrichment early on. There is no reason for a math student to wait until he or she is frustrated or lost to get help or spend a little extra time learning math.

Roll with it while things are good and you may be surprised with the results you get.

Before we launch into a few really cool math sites and apps here’s a few tips for kicking off the new school year:

Work to set up a realistic schedule with enough homework/study time built in
Encourage your kids to ask questions and be active in the classroom
Keep an eye on family time when working out that schedule. Too many families suffer from becoming strangers once the race of a fall semester begins
Establish good communication with your child’s teachers

Websites for Math Help

Sometimes we need a little extra explanation, or want to see more problems worked out. These sites are great free learning tools.

NRICH is a site for math at all ages. From the link here you can select anywhere from lower primary to upper secondary “homes”. There is helpful content here for everything from fractions to trigonometry.

MathPickle.com has an impressive collection of K-12 Video Support, info on electronic and board games, and ideas for parents and educators, all housed in a site with an easy to navigate grade selection tool.

Khan Academy has been around for a long time and in addition to math help, kids and parents can find resources for help learning a variety of subjects. It all began with Samuel Kahn posting math videos to help his young family members learn math and it took off from there.

OnlineMathLearning.com is site loaded with resources for all ages. Information is easy to find. There are grade categories, information organized by topics such as geometry and calculus, links to math prep for tests like the SAT or GRE and links to Common Core standards as well. You can also find a great collection of games and trivia. A student can click on Geometry, select a category such as Geometric Formulas, pick a specific area they are working on in class such as Slope of a Line, and land on a page with good step by step instructions, examples, and video lessons.

Purplemath can be helpful in a few different ways. The site contains links to reviewed free resources to discussion forums, worksheets and other sites.

Apps

Math Apps, Games and Websites is a compiled list of apps for mainly mobile devices with a few sites mixed in. This list features brief descriptions, which devices you can work with, and age ranges for the products.

We’ve mentioned this list before in another article from Miracle Math Coaching. But it is worthy of a second mention in this piece. Mobile Learning In Action: Our 101 Favorite Apps is a great starter list with all of the details you want to know before taking a closer look at an app.

Follow iGameMom to keep up with what’s new, good, and happening in the world of educational games and apps for kids of all ages.

A Break from Electronics – Traditional Games

Simply Clever Cards shares these unique math flash cards. The possibilities with this deck of 52 playing cards are endless for young learners.

Check out Playful Ways to Learn Weights and Measures from blogger Mama Smiles. Working with weights and measures can sometimes be intimidating to young students and it is a skill they need to become comfortable with early on. For another cool list of math games from Mama Smiles check out The Very Best Math Games for Kids of All Ages.

Kids Activities Blog put together this list of 30+ Super Fun Math Games. It’s a great list of hands on fun and crafty activities for the young learners.