August 2014
Home Grading Your Child’s Work is Important Because . . .
At Kumon we ask you to home grade your
child’s work, not because we are trying to
make extra work for you, but because
home grading on a daily basis encourages
your child to correct his or her errors when
they’re made.
Your child better learns from those
mistakes, and makes fewer overall errors
on future worksheets. By making fewer
errors, he or she will move ahead faster
and won’t have to repeat material. The
result? Your child gets excited and
enthusiastic about the progress he or she is
making and is more motivated to continue
with the Kumon work. There are fewer
complaints about doing the daily work,
and this creates a happy household for
everyone!
child’s progress. Without daily feedback,
your child will continue to make the
same mistakes and may even reinforce
those errors.
Grading your child’s work each day is
the surest way to help your child advance
quickly.
Parents who grade the homework days
later (or on the way to Kumon) slow their
Success Stories
Rest up for Success
Does your child complain about doing Kumon work? Have
trouble concentrating? Get distracted easily? If so, perhaps he
or she isn’t getting enough sleep. A study released by the
National Sleep Foundation states that children aged 5–12, need
10–11 hours of sleep each night. This means a child this age
who wakes up 6 a.m. should be in bed by at least 8 p.m.
“Starting Kumon last summer gave our son more time to focus
on studying. It motivated him to set high goals, which made the
school year easier.” – Victor, Kumon Dad
Lack of sleep can lead to decreased concentration, increased
hyperactivity, impaired learning, poor motor skill
development; as well as more colds, influenzas, and other
infections. So ensure your child gets plenty of sleep this school
year to succeed both in school and at Kumon!
“Malik’s success through the Kumon Program has been
inspirational to my family. We are thankful that we found a
program that helped him unlock the potential we never knew
existed.” – Erika, Kumon Mom
“Kumon helped me become confident. I know that I can reach
whatever goals I set in life.” – Rose, Kumon Student
Kumon of Framingham
630 Worcester Road,
Framingham, MA 01702
508-875-0552
[email protected]
www.kumon.com
Kumon of Franklin
291 E.Central Street
Franklin,Ma-02038
508-541-1326
[email protected]
“Regrouping” Versus Borrowing and Carrying
Kumon instructors are often asked by
parents: “What is ‘regrouping,’ and why
don’t schools teach ‘borrowing and
carrying’ like I learned as a child?”
Regrouping and borrowing/carrying are
simply different ways to add and subtract
numbers with multiple place values.
Many students are taught regrouping at
school; however, at Kumon we do not
believe in this approach.
Regrouping is a way for students who
have not yet memorized basic addition
and subtraction to mark and hold their
place while they count up and down on
their fingers. Regrouping requires little to
no mental ability with numbers, which is
what makes it different from borrowing
and carrying. It is learning math by rote
and is not sustainable when a student
Words of Wisdom
“A confident child becomes more
curious about what is in store for them
next, and becomes excited about
learning more. That is the desire for
learning.” Toru Kumon
“Children can make progress when they
study by themselves. The role of the
instructor is to find the best way to
facilitate the child’s progress through
self-study.” Toru Kumon
“It’s our job as educators not to stuff
knowledge into children as if they were
merely empty boxes, but to encourage
each child to want to learn, to enjoy
learning, and be capable of studying
whatever he or she may need to or wish
to in the future.” Toru Kumon
Regrouping is learning
math by rote and is not
sustainable . . .
reaches higher-level math, as in algebra.
Borrowing and carrying is another way to
add and subtract numbers with multiple
place values, but it’s done without writing
the numbers as they are “carried” or
“borrowed.” It requires a good deal more
focus and concentration, as well as a welldeveloped sense of numbers. Essentially,
Kumon students develop their minds to
work with numbers until they can borrow
and carry mentally.
Why is this important? Students need
strong mental skills with numbers in order
to round numbers and estimate in long
division, or to find the common
denominator with fractions. They also
need the strong mental ability to convert
fractions to decimals, or decimals to
fractions.
Even simple calculations such as
adding, subtracting, multiplying, and
dividing fractions require mental ability,
and students who learn only regrouping
usually do not develop a strong number
sense or have sufficient mental ability to
comfortably handle long division,
fractions, and beyond.
This becomes a huge problem in more
advanced math such as algebra and
calculus when the equations become
much more complicated.
Learning to borrow and carry will stand
your student in good stead as he or she
advances in school.
Question of the Month
How Can I Help My Child Succeed This School Year?
Parents play a crucial role in making sure children succeed in the Kumon program.
One of the best ways to do that is to help your child get organized for the school
year by
Creating a study space: Dedicate an area just for school and completing Kumon
homework. Stock this area with all the supplies your child will need. Create a
cubbyhole for your child’s backpack, as well as anything else he or she might need
the next day to avoid last minute chaos. Post outstanding test results and report
cards in this area, which will help your child stay motivated. Install a clock so your
child can time the daily Kumon work.
Using a calendar: Help your child learn to use a calendar to stay on top of
upcoming assignments and tests. Create monthly Kumon goals and write them in
the calendar. Hang this calendar in the study space so it’s always top of mind.
Creating a Kumon system: Help your child create a system for organizing the
Kumon worksheet holder. An organized worksheet holder means your student will
progress faster, as he or she won’t need to repeat material due to lost worksheets.
Setting a good example: Children learn from their parents, so if you are organized,
it is likely your child will follow suit. In addition, set a dedicated time each day for
your child to complete the Kumon work. During this time, sit beside your child and
do a quiet activity of your own, such as paying bills, going through paperwork, or
reading a book.
Do visit our face book page KUMON for more information and guidance.
Kumon is a long-term program. Our goal is to make high school work
easy and to prepare all students for college, but this does not happen
overnight. Those who are dedicated to completing their daily Kumon
assignments are on the right path. Keep up the good work!