mathMany parents invest big money in thick workbooks to teach their kids math. Some children are very open to workbooks, whereas others are not. If your child rebels against workbooks, don't fret. There are plenty of ways to teach math that are fun and educational.

1. Math Uno
Remember the standard game of UNO? Have you ever tied math into the game? Instead of laying a matching color or number on the card that is face up, instead lay two or more number cards on the face up card that add up to that number.
For instance, if I lay down a red 4, then my son could lay down any two cards that add up to 4 (of course they’d need to be a matching color). If he played a blue 1&3, then the color would change to blue and it would be the next player’s turn.

For older kids, you can incorporate subtraction, multiplication and division as well.

2. Have a Garage Sale
Garage Sales or yard sales are a perfect way to teach math. Your child can help by marking the prices on items, by collecting money and giving change. No matter how you involve your child, he or she will be learning math, and possibly some good business and communication skills in the process.

3. Cooking
Cooking is the utmost way to teach multiplication, addition, division and fractions. Between doubling and tripling recipes and dealing with fractions, your child will get a lot of experience with math. If your child helps pick out the recipes and write the grocery shopping lists, he will get practice with his reading and writing skills, too.

4. Yu-Gi-Oh
If your child enjoys Yu-Gi-Oh, his math will get a major workout. He's got to add and subtract attack and defense points every turn – into the thousands.

5. Board Games
Dust off your Monopoly game. Counting money is great practice for learning math.

6. Start a Business
Of course one of the best ways to practice math is by running a business. Figure out what your child enjoys and help him to consider that as a business. Or, if you have a family business, then, by all means, allow your child to help. Whether it’s a lawn-mowing business or a little lemonade stand, your child’s brain will be challenged.

These are just a few of the many ways you can creatively practice math with your child. He won't know that you're teaching him, but his math skills will improve as a result.
Nicole Dean invites you to www.ShowKidstheFun.com -- a free website filled with activities to make memories with your children and www.ShowKidstheMoney.com -- a fun and informative resource for moms who want to help their kids make money.