Singapore Math Emphasizes Mastery, not Memorization

The French School of Austin, or Ecole Jean Jacques Rousseau, emphasizes multilingualism, multiculturalism, and academic excellence. Located in Austin, Texas, the French School of Austin/Ecole Jean Jacques Rousseau offers students in preschool through eighth grade a challenging curriculum that includes Singapore math. 

After children in Singapore began ranking highly in math, the rest of the world took notice and began adopting what is now known as Singapore math. This encompasses the country’s methods for teaching math to children in kindergarten through sixth grade. 

Some educators credit the success of Singapore math to its emphasis on mastery rather than memorization. American math classes have traditionally relied on memorization and math drills, with immediate results on tests. Singapore math, on the other hand, is based on child development theory. It focuses on helping students master a smaller number of concepts each year, so that they understand the math they’re applying at a fundamental level. 

Singapore math is still relatively new to the United States, as it was introduced in the late 1990s by Jeffrey Thomas and his wife, Dawn, a native of Singapore. However, schools in 40 states have incorporated it into their curriculum, a number that will likely continue to grow.

Three Things Parents Can Do to Help Kids Reach Their Full Potential

A preparatory school that has been teaching students for more than a decade, French School of Austin, or Ecole Jean-Jacques Rousseau, is known for providing a high-quality bilingual education. Staffed by native French speakers, Ecole Jean-Jacques Rousseau/French School of Austin maintains small class sizes and offers numerous extracurricular activities in an effort to promote academic success.

Academic success depends on not only schools, but also children’s parents and home life. Following are several things that parents can do to help their kids reach their full potential:

- Promote hard work. Rather than focusing only on grades, parents should address how hard their children work in their classes. This includes the number of hours they spend studying and completing assignments. By focusing on hard work instead of grades, parents teach their kids the value of putting effort into the things they want.

- Give them new experiences. Kids need to be given plenty of opportunities to discover new passions and talents that could impact the rest of their lives. Parents can do this by allowing their children to participate in different classes, jobs, or sports and other extracurricular activities. As kids try these new activities, parents must be encouraging and helpful.

- Offer plenty of praise. As children develop, recognition and praise of their work play a significant role in the development of self-esteem. Praise also encourages children to try new things in an effort to win approval and to take intellectual risks instead of becoming afraid of failure.