With numbers and strings in Perl

In Perl strings and numbers are called scalars. Scalars, which are over the lifetime of a program does not change as a means of constant or literal. Scalar, which does not change known to be variable. Operators want to do with scaling, for example, add the contents of two variables.

Literal / constant

There are two types of literals:

numeric values, eg 6, 8.5, 11, 17.678, and so on, and
String literals, such as "Hello World".

NumericLiterals can be numbers, eg 6, floating point, for example, 12.5, or scientific notation, for example, 2E10. Strings are a sequence of characters, such as Goodbye Cruel World.

Scalar variables

The data that may change during the life of a program is stored in variables, like $ total. The dollar sign ($) is a type ID, and tells Perl that the variable contains scalar data.

Variable names can contain alphanumeric characters (az, AZ,and 0-9) and underlining and capital letters and lowercase letters.

Expressions and Operators

Perl programs are collections of terms and instructions, the default in the order in which they are executed in the program.

1. #! / Usr / bin / perl-w
2. $ Radius = 10;
3. $ Pi = 3.1415927;
4. Area = pi * $ $ ($ radius ** 2);
$ Sq. 5 Printing;

The equal sign (=) is called the assignment operator. Takes the value on the right side, and puts it inthe variable on the left. An asterisk (*) is the multiplication operator. Two stars with (**) indicate, for power. "

Another example:

1. $ A = "Goodbye";
2. $ B = "cruel world";
3. $ C $ a = $ b;
. 4 print $ c;

The period (.) Concatenate the contents of variable $ a and $ b, and the result is placed in the variable $ c.

Helping Your Kids Through the Mazes of Math!

Math can be hard. Monday through Friday we sit at the table next to our children and do math problems. It takes forever to do just one page. Sometimes it feels like it is the only subject we get to. It becomes a monster... a math monster. We wonder if we should change math books or go back to the beginning of the one we're already in. Maybe speed drills will help or paying more attention to word problems. Math wasn't hard for us when we were in school. How come our kids can't get it?

Math is important too. It determines whether our son will be able to understand high school and college science subjects. Fifty percent of the SAT score is Math. And every child needs to know how to balance his or her checkbook and figure the interest costs of money he or she will borrow as adults. Yes, math is a very important part of modern life. It can be hard to determine what we really want our children to know math wise. Here are a few suggestions:

Teach your child to add, subtract, multiply (by fifth grade, he should know his multiplication tables very well) and divide. This is a lot to learn and it usually takes until sixth grade to be proficient at basic math computations. After all, that's why they call it long division, because it takes so long to learn how to do it! Don't worry now about Algebra; worry about whether your son can do long division by himself. After this, concentrate on fractions and decimals. Go over and over them until he really knows them. This will take longer than you expected.

Next, concentrate on word problems. If your child has trouble with word problems follow these steps: First, work the problems out physically. This means use real cups, quarts and gallons and actually measure and pour the water. Even if it is a word problem about two cars driving toward each other, you can use small matchbox cars for a physical demonstration. Keep working with the real physical objects until the problem is mastered. Second, move on to drawing pictures. Draw pictures of the cups, quarts and gallons. Third, use numbers to represent the real objects and work the problems. Don't rush the steps, make sure he has mastered the word problems in this order: physical, then pictures, then numbers representations.

During your homeschool years, read at least one good Math History book with your child. Two very good examples are:

* How Math Works, published by Readers Digest

* Fractals, Googol Math and Other Stories by Theoni Pappas

After your child masters in difficulty and decimal fraction, I suggest starting with a calculator to do all his math problems. He must learn to use a graphics calculator. With the help of a graphing calculator is a scientific argument for it, and takes a lot of practice. His undergraduate and evidence so requires. And there are many complicated mathematical problems that can not be done efficiently withoutscientific calculator. Believe me, even with the use of this calculator his problems will be tough to work. Today, math is so much more than doing calculations by hand and he will need time to master this advanced work.

If you are becoming overwhelmed reading this and are thinking that you will never be able to teach upper level mathematics, don't worry. There are many fine homeschool math classes to be found. When your child gets to advanced math, you can either learn along with him or send him to an outside math class. Or you can use a math tutor or math instruction videos.

This new century's math world will be a lot different than the last century. It will be filled with the huge numbers in outer space or the tiniest numbers of the microscopic and cellular world. Your child's ability to understand and work in this world will be tightly intertwined with his math ability. So set your child's math sights high and prepare him well for the future.

Five Top Questions Parents Ask in Regard to Their Learning Disabled Child

When a parent has a child who is diagnosed as learning disabled, many issues must be addressed. There are the emotional issues of how to discuss this with the child, issues regarding the child's learning skill deficiencies, and what parents as well as their teachers can do to help the child.

One of the issues that parents must address is how to talk to their child about the subject of their learning disability. Should they use the term "disability" when talking to their child, and if so, how do they explain it to their child without demoralizing him or her. What is the best approach to take? What words should be used?

A learning disabled child is a child who innately has an average to superior IQ but with serious learning skill deficiencies. Generally he is working two to two and half years below grade level. A learning disabled child is not a child who is mentally retarded but rather one who is learning deficient. These learning deficiencies can be taught. With the right kind of instruction, a learning disabled child can improve dramatically.

Parents should understand that there are four main categories of learning skills. They are visual perception, visual memory, auditory perception and auditory memory. Once a learning disabled child develops his learning skills along with his basic reading and mathematics skills, he will be able to work well in school at his true intellectual level.

Parents should explain to the child that he has certain learning and basic skills that are not well developed. He should also be told that there are many other children who have the same problem that he has, but with the proper help, he will be able to overcome these weaknesses and develop these skills. He should be told that this problem does not mean that he is not intelligent, and that his innate ability is good. It is important for parents to encourage their child to work hard, but at the same to understand that once he has developed his skills, he will be able to learn much more easily. The child needs to understand that this will not happen overnight, that it will take time. However, he also needs to understand that with the right kind of help and his hard work, once he has developed these skills, he will be able to learn just like any other child.

Consistent reinforcement of the basic and learning skills, and consistent encouragement, are a major part of what goes into helping children to completely overcome their disability.

A second issue concerning learning disabled children is how to help a child who has a serious visual perception problem; that is, one who frequently reverses the order of letters or substitutes letters when reading or writing. In particular, these children do not notice differences in similar words. For example, a child with a serious visual perception problem may read this as that, was as saw, went as want, small as smile, stood as stoop, kitchen as kitten, and campers as capture. This weakness can seriously affect the child's comprehension of the material he is reading or make his writing incomprehensible. While it is not uncommon for beginning readers to confuse and reverse letters or words that are similar, if the child continues for months to reverse or substitute letters while reading or writing, it is a sign that the child needs special concentrated work to help him or her overcome this deficiency.

Parents can jot down the words that their child confuses when he is reading orally, point out the differences and then have their child read each word. Parents can then print the words on a flashcard with both words on each side of the card so that the child can compare the difference between the two words. For example, on one side of the card it might say "small smile" and on the other side "smile small." They should then have their child read the cards and review them the next day, continually working on the flashcards until they are mastered.

If a child continuously confuses two particular words, parents can try another teaching technique. They can print each word on a piece of paper and then have their child trace each word saying each letter as he traces the word, then read the word. The child should trace the word over and over again until he feels that he truly knows it. The child should then do the same with the word that is similar but not the same.

Lastly, there are workbooks designed to help students develop visual perception. These workbooks can be very helpful if they are used consistently for ten to fifteen minutes two to three times a week. Workbooks that focus on the most frequently misperceived words are most helpful because they pinpoint the problem areas.

A third question that parents ask in relation to their learning disabled children is how to help their child when he has been diagnosed with a serious auditory memory problem which basically involves attention, listening and recall.

Most learning disabled children and, in particular, those who have been diagnosed with ADD (Attention, Deficit Disorder) or ADHD (Attention, Deficit, Hyperactivity Disorder) have serious auditory memory weaknesses. This learning skill weakness often interferes tremendously with their ability to grasp information that is presented to them orally in school, attend to what has been taught to them orally, form images in their minds of that information and recall what they have heard. Because often only get fragments of what is said, for them is very difficult to understand and remember what he taught orally.

Many children simply do not develop the ability to play automatically when they are young, not because they do not try to hear, but simply because they do not develop the skills involved with music. Often these children feel that they hear well, but when it is clear that they have triedare processing and recalling very little of what is being said.

Parents who have a child with auditory memory problems need to make their child aware of the fact that he needs help to become a good listener, and that he can overcome this weakness. This should be done in a positive encouraging way. Scolding a child for not being a good listener and demanding that he "listen" only makes the child nervous and apprehensive, causing him to feel badly about himself and therefore producing little or no improvement. The most important approach to use is one of encouragement coupled with concentrated remediation, one that stresses the fact that the child can overcome his deficiency with help.

One way that parents can help their child to become a better listener is to read a short paragraph to their child. After the paragraph has been read, the child should be asked to recite the main ideas and supporting details of the passage. If the child cannot state what he has heard, the paragraph should be read again orally to the child. Then he should be asked once again to recite what he has heard.

If after two tries the child still cannot state what he has heard, the parent should break the paragraph down into sentences. First, the parent should read just one sentence at a time asking the child to recite what he has heard. If this is easy for him, then the parent should try reading two sentences, gradually increasing the amount of sentences read until the child can see, hear and remember a whole paragraph.

Parents should keep this skill with their child until the parents can read points is no longer practical and the child, the main idea and supporting details, remember. This is an excellent technique for use with the history and science and literature.

A fourth question is often linked to mathematics. Children with learning disabilities who are interested in mathematics is often a difficult timememorizing number facts and understanding, for instance, that subtraction is the opposite of addition, and that division is the opposite of multiplication. There is much that parents can do to help their child to understand basic concepts of numbers, memorize facts, and learn essential skills for computation.

If, for example a child has problems understanding the concept of division, the parent might set up a pretend birthday party, asking their child to divide the prizes or food equally. Example: Pretend that there are three people at the birthday party and that you have six cupcakes. (Parents can cut paper in circles to represent the cupcakes.) Put objects such as stuffed animals at the table to represent each person. Ask your child to count all of the cupcakes that you have. Then have him take the paper cupcakes one by one to see how many each person would get if they are divided equally. Then say to him,"Six cupcakes divided by three people would give each person two cupcakes." Write the fact for him to see. 6 ÷ 3 = 2. Parents can do this kind of exercise with other items until their child gets the concept of division. Put the facts on flashcards with the problem on one side and the problem with the answer on one side. Example: 6 ÷ 3 = on one side, and 6 ÷ 3= 2 on the other. Parents should have their child study the facts and then go through them with the child the next day giving him rewards for every one that he memorizes and can remember the next day. It is important to continue to review the old facts as you add new ones. (Rewards for fact memorize can be stars or stickers on a chart.)

A second technique that helps children understand the relationship between multiplication and division is to teach your child "number families." The first two are "mother" and "father" and they are the multiplication facts. The next two are "sister" and brother" and they are the division facts. Three numbers go together to make up a number family.

Example:
This is the number family of 3, 2, and 6.

Multiplication:
mother 3 x 2 = 6 (either the 3 or the 2 can come first but father is the opposite)
father 2 x 3 = 6

Division:
sister 6 ÷ 3 = 2
brother 6 ÷ 2 = 3

Parents can use this technique with all other number families. Eventually the child will begin to understand that three numbers that stay together make up the number family, and that once he memorizes the "mother" fact, he already knows the others. Parents can also point out to the child that in multiplication, the largest number comes at the end while in division, the largest number is at the beginning. This technique works well for addition and subtraction as well as multiplication and division.

The final question that is most frequently asked by parents of children with learning problems involves reading comprehension. Once a learning disabled child begins to read words and phrases, often found it difficult to process what he reads out and reasonable. It may be that he reads very slowly, word for word, and so on reading every word that he is not concerned about the ability to focus on the message of the sentence or paragraph. This reading may be a situation where the child ends with a passage to two or three times before they grasp the meaning. This can be very frustrating for the child and the teachers and parents.

First,is for parents to work with the child to him in developing a good sight vocabulary, so that he does not need to explore more words in a sentence is essential. Parents can do this by making flash cards of words that their child has to explore and work with the child on a bit 'at a time, before and after their child's vocabulary begins to raise his eyes. This in turn will help him more quickly and fluently read, and therefore are more focused on what, instead of readingmechanics of reading word by word.

Secondly, the parent can help their child, once he reads more fluently, to try to focus on reading for meaning by stopping the child after he reads just one sentence and asking him to tell them what he has read. It is best not to ask specific questions but rather allow the child time to learn how to concentrate on grasping the main idea and supporting details, the meaning as a whole. If the child can tell the parent what he has read after reading one sentence, the parent can have him read two sentences at a time. Once he gets so that he can focus on reading two sentences at a time, the parent can have the child progress to three sentences. Gradually, the number of sentences that he reads can be increased until he is reading an entire paragraph with good comprehension.

Much can be done to help learning disabled children overcome their deficiencies and begin to learn just like any other child. It takes patience, hard work, and most importantly, stress on the development of learning skills as well as basic skills. The results are well worth the effort.

Printable Bingo Cards

Most people know how to play the game of bingo, after all it's a game that many of us either played as kids or learned to enjoy in later life. The idea of the game is quite simple: every player is given a bingo card (sometimes known as a "bingo board" or "bingo sheet"), each of the squares contains an item (traditionally a number), and players tick off squares when the corresponding items are called out by the bingo caller. The objective of the game is to be the first player to get a continuous line of items diagonally, vertically or horizontally across the card, and then claim the win by calling out "Bingo!".

As already mentioned, in traditional versions of bingo, the items in the squares of the bingo card are numbers. Today however many variations of the standard game have also become popular, and in these variants, words, phrases, dates, times or even math problems can be used for hte items on the cards.

- Holiday versions of bingo are increasingly popular. Bingo is a great activity for family and community events since people of all ages can play together. In holiday variants of the game, words or phrases relating to the particular holiday are used, so words like "Advent" or "Santa Claus" in a Christmas game, or "Revolution" or "George Washington" in an Independence Day game.

- Bingo games with words and phrases are popular in K-12, English as Second Language (ESL) and foreign language teaching. They're a fun way for students to practice word recognition, reading and spelling.

- Bingo cards can also be printed with math problems. They're good way to practice multiplication tables ("times tables") as well as arithmetic. Students are required to write in the correct answers to problems as they are called out, rather than simply ticking items off their cards.

In order to play most of these variants of the game, you will of course need bingo cards containing items relating to your chosen theme. Obtaining preprinted cards can be difficult - even if you can find somewhere to buy them, they can be expensive and may not contain the exact items that you want. Preparing bingo cards by hand is possible, but very time consuming! The best answer is to get your computer to do the work - with the right bingo card maker software you can print custom bingo cards with consummate ease.

Creating a Blackjack Card Counting Strategy

Card counting strategies range from fairly simple to absurdly complex. This article provides instructions on creating a card counting strategy and in doing so describes the various characteristics of counting systems. It may be of interest even if you don't wish to create a strategy but want to learn about the make-up of such systems.

Creating a new strategy is not difficult if you start with an existing strategy. If you wish to start from scratch there is a bit more work. There are plenty of strategies in the books. But, many people do like to at least modify a current strategy to better fit their needs.

Card Counting Tools

The following tools are needed:

Efficiency Calculator - Tells you how efficient a particular count is

Index Generator - To create new playing indexes

Simulator - To fine-tune and measure the effectiveness of the new strategy


Card Counting Tag Values

First you need to settle on the card point values. If you have already done this, you can skip to the Index Generation section. Although reading this section may add to your understanding. Each card has a point value like +1 or -1. There are several characteristics of counts as follows:

True Count vs. Running Count - As cards are seen, you keep a running sum of the card tag values. Running Count systems use this count for both betting and playing decisions. True Count systems require that you divide the RC by a number representing the number of cards that have been seen. There are various methods of converting RC to TC (e.g. division, multiplication, tables.) TC systems generally use this TC for all playing decisions. Most also use it for betting decisions. There are exceptions to both of these rules. RC strategies are generally easier to use and TC strategies are generally more accurate.

Balanced vs. Unbalanced - In a balanced strategy, all of the point values sum to zero. In an unbalanced strategy, the sum of all the cards is positive. Unbalanced strategies have an advantage because they can be used in the easier running count systems. Although they can also be used in TC systems. Balanced strategies have an advantage in that they are generally a bit more accurate (there are exceptions) and the count hovers around zero making counting easier and betting strategies easier.

Ace-Reckoned vs. Ace-Neutral - Generally the Ace is counted as a negative number (Ace-reckoned) or zero (Ace-neutral.) Ace-Reckoned strategies are generally better for shoe games and Ace-Neutral strategies are generally better for single and double deck. (Not always true.) There are compromise strategies (e.g. Zen, UBZ II) where the Ace is counted at half of the normal value. This is particularly good for double-deck and not bad for single deck or shoes. These days, Ace-reckoned strategies are more popular.

Level - The level of a strategy refers to the highest value assigned to cards. Level 2 and 3 card counting methods are more efficient, but quite a bit more difficult for most people. Level 3, 4 & 5 strategies also exist. But this is overkill. The most popular strategies these days are level 1. In a level 1 strategy, tens are counted as -1 and some or all low cards are counted as +1.

Side Counts - Some strategies use one or more side counts. The most common is counting the Aces in a separate count to make betting more accurate in Ace-neutral systems. This is because Aces are large cards for the purposes of betting but small cards for the purposes of playing when you don't have a Blackjack.

Suit/Color Aware Counts - Some count will have different tag values for red and black cards. Examples are Red7 & KISS. The attempt here is to gain most of the advantage of a higher level strategy without the higher range of counts. I would expect the error rate would increase somewhat but have no figures for this.

Other ease of use considerations - The fewer the number of Card counting is easier to count. The pairs of cards to add more than zero, the better. This is because most of the counter to count the pairs of cards, if possible. If you see a +1 and a -1 card at the same time, it will automatically ignore, since they sum to zero.


Well, as we decide the values of variables of the map? First, you need to decide on the above properties. Secondly, you should consider a look at the most popular approaches that exist. Next, you need to understand the correlation betting gamesEfficiency and Insurance Correlation. These are terms created by Peter Griffin in Theory of Blackjack. Reading this book will help you a great deal. These terms are defined as:

Playing Efficiency - PE indicates how well a card counting system handles changes in playing strategy. Playing efficiency is particularly important in hand-held games (one or two decks.)

Betting Correlation - BC is defined as the correlation between card point values and the effect of removal of cards. It is used to predict how well a card counting system predicts good betting situations and can approach 1.00 (100% correlation.) BC is particularly important in shoe games (six or eight decks.)

Insurance Correlation - IC is defined as the correlation between card point values and the value of cards in Insurance situation. A point value of -9 for tens and +4 for all other cards would be perfect for predicting if an Insurance bet should be placed.


Index Generation

Once you have your card values, you need to generate indexes. First, you need to make a few general decisions:

Initial Running Count - The IRC is the count you start with after a shuffle. Balanced strategies nearly always have an IRC of zero. This causes the count to hover around zero. A few people start with a higher number because they don't like to count negative numbers. This has no effect on the efficiency of a strategy. Unbalanced strategies usually have negative IRC's. This is because the count rises as the shoe is played. The IRC is often set so that there is an advantage after the count becomes positive. Also, different IRC's are generally used for different numbers of decks. This is not necessary; but makes it easier to remember playing and betting decisions since the count has to rise significantly farther for shoes than for single-deck. Some people use zero for unbalanced IRC's to avoid large negative numbers.

True Count Calculation - You need to decide how to convert the running count to the true count if your strategy uses True Count decisions. The most common methods are to divide by the number of full decks or half decks remaining. There is little difference in overall effectiveness. Full-deck is slightly better for betting and half-deck is slightly better for playing. HiLo Lite and the 1998 version of Zen divide by quarter-decks remaining. This makes betting a bit easier; but a bit less accurate. (You can see this explained in Blackbelt in Blackjack by Arnold Snyder when the next version is printed. It is currently out of print.) Some people use multiplication instead of division. Another method is to use a table of True Counts by shoe depth and running count. This is described in Blackjack Bluebook II by Fred Renzey.

Rounding/Truncating/Flooring - Nearly everyone uses integer index values for playing decisions. So, how do you round the true count after division? It doesn't matter greatly as long as you use the same method for play and index generation. But, Flooring is currently preferred. That is, if there is a fraction, round down to the next lower value.

Which indexes - In older strategies huge numbers of indexes were used. But, most indexes have very little value. You can find a discussion on this subject in Blackjack Attack by Don Schlesinger. (You should read this book for many other reasons.) See the discussion on Illustrious 18 and Catch-22. Theory of Blackjack also has a discussion on the value of indexes. But, it is concerned primarily with single-deck and doesn't take into account the frequency of decisions.

Risk-Averse vs. Expectation Maximizing Indexes - Older strategies generally used expectation maximizing indexes. (There are exceptions.) Such indexes result in decisions that give the greatest average gain for each bet. But, this is not always the best bet as the gain is so small in some cases it may not be worth the extra risk as in close doubling down decisions. Risk-Averse indexes reduce the risk which reduces the variance which allows you to slightly increase your betting levels. This provides a slight overall improvement in results. RA Indexes are now preferred since they perform a bit better with no extra effort. Blackjack Attack contains a discussion on RA indexes.

Index Compromises - Older strategies used the best possible indexes they could calculate at the time. Some newer strategies make compromises for ease of use. For example, the double down indexes for 9 vs. 2 and 9 vs. 7 may not be the same; but they are so close you can compromise and make them the same. This makes them easier to remember and use. If you wish to use compromise indexes; you will need to first generate the correct indexes using an index generator and then use trial and error with simulations to test various compromises. Red7, HiLo Lite, Basic Omega II and 1998 Zen use compromise indexes.

Rules Compromises - Stand on 17 vs. Hit on 17, Multi-deck vs. Single-deck, Double after Split vs. no DAS. These all affect indexes. You need to decide if you want to go through the effort of using different indexes or determining what games you will most often play and just use those indexes. Or, compromise by using indexes that are in-between.

Composition Dependent indexes - These are indexes that look at the exact composition of your hand (8, 6, 2 vs. 10) instead of the total of the hand (16 vs. 10.) They add slightly to system effectiveness. But, few people use them.

Multi-Parameter Indexes - These are used along with side-counts to improve playing decisions. MP Index Tables are rarely used today.


Once you have created the indexes, you will want to run sims with different rules and penetrations to test your system. The best method of evaluating the overall strength of a strategy is by the SCORE as described in Blackjack Attack.

Hints and Tips

Read The Theory of Blackjack by Peter Griffin. Particularly chapters 3 and 4 as they will explain the value of card tags and indexes.

Some strategies use compromise indexes. Hi-Lo Lite and Red 7 are examples. These are indexes that are changed so that many decisions use the same index. To create these, generate the accurate indexes first and then run sims with different indexes to see which ones can be changed without impacting overall SCORE. These sims must be over two billion rounds.

Indexes do not make a huge difference in shoe games. The more decks, the less value you get out of accurate indexes.

The gain from using risk-averse indexes is really quite small. But, there is no downside.

To accurately calculate the SCORE, you must use an optimal betting ramp.

Some Split indexes are very strange. Splitting or not splitting goes back and forth as the count changes. This is because they are both offensive and defensive. That is, sometimes you split to make more money and sometimes you split to lose less money. 2, 2 v 3 or 3, 3, v 7 for example. It really doesn't matter much what you do with these hands.

Indexes can change as the penetration changes. This is particularly true with unbalanced strategies, but also true with balanced strategies.

Practice Makes Perfect - Multiplication Math Game

Multiplication is the cornerstone of mathematics specifically algebra yet a lot of people who spend a lot of time in learning the multiplication table, division, proportions and fractions still struggle with it later on. Multiplication is the basis of pattern reasoning and thinking and a lot of practice will help your child in perfecting the skill. Multiplication math games can be put into good use to enhance your child's math skills.

Students usually respond well to repetitive learning and memorization which makes the old adage "practice makes perfect" true. Constant practice is important in putting multiplication principles and functions into memory and will lessen the ordeal of learning these skills. One area which can be enhanced through practice is speed and accuracy in solving multiplication problems and equations.

Practicing multiplication does not have to be a nightmare for you and your child and can be done simply and easily through multiplication math games. Here are some math games which you can use to practice multiplication with your kids and enhance their skills.


Money games. Monopoly is one game you can use for money games. Although the game uses play money still you can practice multiplication by computing how many and how much you need to buy for a turn in the game.

Grocery game. When you are in the grocery ask your kids to compute how many items they can buy given a certain amount or give them a list of items to pick up and have them compute how much is the amount needed to pay for everything on their list.

Sports cards. Boys will enjoy this game because they are usually into the statistics of their favorite players. You can ask them to compute for their favorite baseball player's batting average given their number of "at bats" and their number of "hits".

Flash cards. The ever handy flash cards can be played anywhere and everywhere. This will train your child in multiplying with speed and accuracy.

Teacher game. Reverse the teaching process by letting your child teach you multiplication. Children love to be teachers themselves and they will have fun teaching you what they know of multiplication. At the same time you will be able to assess which areas your child needs more help and which areas he/she does not clearly understand.
Working and practicing together is a great and fun way to spend with your child. The bonding time can be helpful for both you and child. You will see how much more your child learns when you are working together.

It is About the Children

Homeschooling should be available to every child, because it benefits them in numerous ways. Some view home schooling as too extreme. Others see it as an alternative to public and private education. Homeschooling provides children with a better education than any public or private school ever could. It can be individually customized for each child's needs. Whether a child has a learning disability or is far ahead of those her age, homeschooling can be tailored to help her achieve success. Homeschooling makes families stronger. Homeschooled children perform better academically than their publicly and privately schooled counterparts. Study after study has shown homeschoolers score higher on standardized tests than those from institutional places of education. Whatever the reasons for the decision to homeschool, the benefits for the child and his family are enormous.

Homeschooling can be individually customized for each child's needs. In public schools, there has been a push for "mainstreaming" students. What this has really done is to put children with learning disabilities right back into situations for which they are not equipped to deal. If a child has attention problems, the over-crowded and over-stimulating classroom can be a nightmare. Homeschool is the perfect option for him. Not only can the learning environment be tailored for serenity, it affords him freedom that he could never even hope for at public school. Away from the rigidity and noise of the classroom, the child can follow his own schedule. He can practice his spelling words while doing sit-ups. He can recite his multiplication facts as he combs his hair. Imagine what would happen in a class of thirty-five third graders if they all chose to do their assignments not sitting quietly at tables or at their desks.

If a child is considered "gifted" in any way, the same problems can occur. If public education maintains that all children should participate in their studies as large groups and not as individuals, then there is no room for exceptional children. If a bright child is forced to conform to the learning needs of the majority, they will not reach their own potential. Often they will finish their work well ahead of the other students and due to boredom, become disruptive and then are labeled "troublemakers." Homeschooling is perfect for these children. For a child who likes to be challenged, a customized setting allows them more positive learning experiences.

Homeschooling makes families stronger. Many people comment on the negative changes that have come about in our society. Crime rates have risen. Some say that this country's citizens do not seem to care about each other as much as they did in ages past. With the advent of the computer age, this is quickly becoming a society that avoids personal interactions. This is the perfect time to get back to strengthening the most important of all relationships. Whatever an individual's personal opinion is on the state of the nation, there is usually one point where most come together: The relationship between a child and their guardian, parent or other significant adult is extremely important. When looking into the daily activities of an average 7th grader, one would be amazed at how busy children have become. Between hours spent in school, sports, hanging out with friends, doing homework and other middle school activities, they have very little time to spend with their parents. This causes a real breakdown in the family unit. Parents may not even know their children anymore. With such small amounts of time to spend together, it is hard to make it true "quality" time. There needs to be a real effort to increase both the quality and the quantity of time spent together.

Homeschooling education can include things not taught at public schools. A family's religious beliefs can be incorporated into the child's knowledge base. Cultural awareness can also find its way into homeschooling. Parents who are totally committed to their children's education can find ways to add to their public school learning. However, think of how much more those same parents could do for their children if they opted to be solely responsible for their education.

Homeschooled children perform better academically than students who publicly and privately schooled. A study done by the Ohio Department of Education found that the high level of academic of home schooled students was based on a higher commitment to their own education. In 1998, Dr. Lawrence Rudner of the University of Maryland found that homeschooled children scored significantly higher on standardized tests than their counterparts in either private or public school settings. Children are able to do this well in homeschool because they work at their own pace.

Homeschooling should be viewed as an option for all children. It provides them with a better education than public or private school. It is can be individually customized. It even makes families stronger. So, if they do better academically and develop stronger bonds with their parents, it seems like it is in a child's best interest to opt for homeschooling. And, after all, it is about the children, right?