Numbers and Shapes

Preschool math is all about numbers and shapes.  My daughter is learning how to count, write numbers, group numbers, and identify shapes.  As we were working on "finding the shape within the shape" in her workbook, the thought struck me that much of our adult lives are centered around numbers and shapes.  Take, for example, fitness.  Fitness is all about numbers and shapes.  And of course most adults do spend a lot of thought if not also time on fitness.  We fret over numbers on the scale, hours logged at the gym, mileage, and of course the ever elusive dream of being in shape. 

I tell my daughter that these mathematical concepts that she is learning will be useful throughout her life.  I enjoy making my children's lessons meaningful to them by showing them how it is used in different ways.  This doesn't always work, and it can be difficult to explain why they need to learn the square root of pi, or memorize the names of the presidents.  Learning for the sake of learning is also important, and memorizing creates new connections in the brain that actually makes you smarter than you were before.  And of course  you never know when a small tidbit of information will come in handy, for example on an job interview or even in social situations.  (See, homeschool families incorporate socialization into our lessons as well!)  But it's nice to be able to clearly explain the benefit of learning, and its practical usage.  So I was very happy to explain to my daughter the importance of numbers to manage money and the use of shapes in architecture.  But I don't explain to her how adults sometimes become very concerned with numbers and shapes, specifically with the numbers on the scale, and the "shape" they're in (or not in.)  As much as numbers are important, I want her to focus on fitness for its health benefits rather than for weight.  I want her to think of food as nutrition and as fuel, not as numbers of calories.  When it comes to fitness and body image, being too concerned with numbers is not beneficial.  And who decided what "being in shape" really means anyway?  Shapes come in many different forms.  Maybe us adults should be satisfied with the variety of shapes that we come in, rather than all trying to fit into the same one.

And speaking of shapes, THE BOX is one shape that homeschooling families pride themselves in thinking outside of.  The dining room table is a classroom.  Math is learned while grocery shopping.  Science is in the backyard garden.  Playing is learning.  Shoes are always optional.  And round is a shape, too.