Avoiding Summer Brain Drain Can Be As Easy as 1, 2, 3

Studies have indicated that a typical child can lose up to three months worth of math education over the summer months. As the gap continues to widen between our children’s math performance and that of their international peers, it is more critical than ever to take steps to plug the “brain drain.”

Columbus, OH (PRWEB) June 26, 2006 -- The Summer Brain Drain has begun. Children are emptying their minds of the math skills they learned during the school months and filling them with thoughts of fun in the sun. “Parents can minimize the brain drain by providing their children with lots of real world opportunities to use their math skills over the summer months,” explains Maria Spencer, co-founder of Ion Development (www.ion-development.com), an online retailer of award winning math games and toys. “One way to do this is to provide them with fun and challenging games that reinforce math concepts and encourage critical thinking.”

Many toy manufacturers now produce full lines of math related games and toys. “The math products available today have come a long way from the flash cards of the past,” Ms. Spencer noted. “They are fast-paced, action-filled and designed for a range of skill levels. They not only teach addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, but also pattern recognition, estimating, fractions and more.”

Today’s math games grab a child’s attention by using familiar themes such as dinosaurs, bugs, sports, and food. “By adding an element of competition, today’s math games and toys are both educational and exciting,” says Ms. Spencer. “At Ion Development, we stock a number of games that have received awards for their ability to teach critical math concepts in way that both engages and entertains children.”

Traditional flash-card type products are still available but have moved into the digital millennium by replacing the cards with hand-held electronic devices. “For children who learn well through visual methods, electronic flash cards are still effective. For auditory learners who do better with pneumonic aids, we also carry CD’s that reinforce math skills through songs,” Ms. Spencer explained.

When selecting math games for your child, it is critical that the games are at the appropriate skill level. A game that is too easy will quickly lose your child’s interest while a game that is too challenging will cause frustration. Even with the manufacturer’s recommended age as a guide, it is often difficult to determine what level of challenge will work for a particular child. Often the best solution is to buy a game that is just above your child’s skill level and if it appears to be too challenging at first, put it away and try it again in a month. Although it is particularly critical to expose children to math during the summer months, math can, and should, be part of a child’s extracurricular activities throughout the year.

Ion Development is an online retailer of games, books, toys and kits that spark young minds with math and science.
For more information, Maria Spencer can be reached via the Ion Development website at www.ion-development.com.

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