1. How much do you preach estimation? MUS uses estimation a lot. I'm not really pushing it to much. Is that good? 2. I need a website the shows 1.06 liters equals around a quart. I need the metric system conversion. Thanks, I do truly appreciate all help.
I don't push estimation much, I just make sure that they get the idea behind and refresh every now and then (They are horrible estimators, but its not a "critical" skill at this point and I think that estimation is best learned through living, this year I plan to put a lot more money in their hands and I expect they will learn a lot more about estimation and money concepts when they are spending it.) Is this what you're looking for? http://www.worldwidemetric.com/measurements.html
I don't think estimation needs to be pushed that much, but it is helpful to know how to do it. This is a skill I use all the time--I want to know how much I am going to be spending and it is a lot easier to estimate if you don't have a calculator handy. I tried looking up some websites, but this computer is moving like a turtle.
Thanks, Ladies. Vicki can estimate. I just don't think it matters so much when you are doing decimals in math. They want to you to estimate when you are doing something like 69.754 X 73.56, then they want you to do the whole problem. I'm not crazy about that. When it concerns money I do want her to able to estimate. She can do that. Thanks for the website. I do appreciate all help more than you know.
I wasn't taught estimation as a child. I was taught the step-by-step method for every.single.thing. It was slow and tedius, but I enjoyed working through things to get the right answer. I didn't learn estimation until my late teens and early 20's, and I only learned it through real life application. I didn't realize I needed it until then, so it's something that was self-taught through necessity. I definitely think it's important when grocery shopping, etc. (as I always estimate up to be sure I'm within budget), but I don't think it's important from a textbook standpoint.
I always found estimation useful in school to double check an answer without doing the problem twice.
The problem I always have with estimation to check an answer is you can be off by a small margin, one that even a good estimate can't catch...
Yes, you can be off. But it can help you catch some errors and when you are in the middle of a test with a set amount of time to complete it estimation is valuable - at least it was to me. In regular math assignments it will cut down on errors. It won't eliminate them though.
Estimation is good in determining if your answer is "reasonable". And I DO use estimation on a regular basis. I pay for my groceries in cash, and I often keep a running total in my head by estimating to the nearest dollar or half-dollar. I also estimate percentages when a store is having a sale.
Jackie, I do that. I use coupons a lot so I estimate the bill in my head a lot. I'm trying to teach that but MUS really stresses estimation. They drive me crazy with it. lol
My ds hates to estimate...he tells me that it's stupid to "guess" at the answer because he already knows what it is. But he's also the kid who has never seen a multiplication sign but can do multiplication in his head
I use MUS and agree they do use it a lot. But we just skip over it. I want them to be able to estimate with money but when it comes to working out math puzzles I want them to be accurate.
I don't remember ever being taught to do estimation (I'm realizing the ps I went to was rather old fashioned- they taught phonics and definitely mastery in math, NOT spiraling at ALL). I taught myself to estimate at some point so I could go back and check my work, but I honestly don't remember anyone TELLING me how to estimate. I think it's important to introduce it, and make sure my own kids know how. But certainly to me it's a "backup" skill.. not a primary one.
