Why are children not learning how to balance a check book or
calculate their taxes in school?
I personally believe that this is the type of mathematics
that children need to be learning. These are basic skills that adults in the
working world use every day.
I recently opened my first bank account and one of the first
things my mom asked me was "Jenna do you even know how to balance a check
book?" And that when it hit me. In
all 13 years of math I had taken through high school, not once did I learn the
basics of how to balance a check book. Don't you think that math curriculums
should be required to include basic math functions?
This would help children later in their lives and eventually
make better and more efficient members of society. What is the purpose of
having a child memorize formulas for concepts that they will never use once
they are out of high school? I strongly believe that if we reform the
curriculum to be based on what every day working adults use that it would
create a much more educated and productive population.
I remember being in elementary school and learning how to add and subtract decimals. One of the activities we did was to have a fake checkbook and balance it. I think there was a "store" in the classroom where you could purchase things. It was a really great activity!
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