Learning Chess to Improve Math

Learning Chess to Improve Math
Author: Frank Ho
Publisher: Ho Math Chess Tutor Franchise Learning Centre
Total Pages: 352
Release: 2015-09-13
Genre:
ISBN: 9781927814772

How did I start to write this Learning Chess to Improve Math workbook? I started to teach my son chess when he was five years old. At that time, a lot of information I had read indicated that there was a strong relationship between mathematics and chess. My son was interested in chess so what would happen if he carried the same interest in chess on to a subject which would require him to use his chess knowledge? What could chess offer in mathematics education? These kinds of questions sparked my interest in studying the relationship between chess and math. What I had found was there had been many chess or math puzzles published but I was not able to find a collection of mathematical chess problems that was specifically created for youngsters. In 1995, I was involved in teaching math and chess at the same time and I started to seriously look into the possibility of creating some math and chess hybrid problems. This is how my son and I started to create the first generation of Math and Chess integrated workbook titled Mathematical Chess Puzzles for Juniors ISBN 0-9683967-0-4 and it was archived at National Library of Canada. It is designed and written for the purpose of learning all kinds of problem-solving skills through over 100 mind provoking and sometimes mind boggling mathematical chess puzzles. The uniqueness of this book is that only the basic chess knowledge and the elementary math ability are needed to solve most of these puzzles. I have been working on refining the contents ever since and after almost 20 years of working the first math and chess workbook, I have incorporated many math concepts and today's version is the fourth generation. This workbook of integrating chess and math puzzles could be used as a supplemental or enriched material to supplement math curriculum. World's first and copyrighted Mathematical Chess Puzzles for Juniors workbook The first edition of workbook Mathematical Chess Puzzles for Juniors created in 1995 was a world's first. I did a through literature and library catalogues searches and publicized my workbook on the internet (including rec.games.chess.misc) resulted in nothing similar to my workbook had ever been published. There was no integrated chess and math workbook ever published for the elementary students at the time when I published my workbook in 1995. In addition, I have updated the workbook since I published the first one 20 years ago with many new and innovative ideas; still my workbook is the only one on the market. It would be devastating for me if some copycat just copied my ideas and formats of worksheets and started to commercialize it. To protect my intellectual property, I am the world's first on the following ideas and concepts and I am the original creator of unique formats of worksheets:

Introduction to Ho Math Chess and Its Founder Frank Ho

Introduction to Ho Math Chess and Its Founder Frank Ho
Author: Frank Ho
Publisher:
Total Pages: 102
Release: 2015-09-13
Genre:
ISBN: 9781927814796

Many people were curious about how I created so many unique workbooks. People were also wondered how Ho Math Chess is different from other similar learning centres. Many readers do not have an idea on how these puzzles were placed in each of our workbooks. When we first created these puzzles, we did not have a blueprint to follow because they did not exist. Many parents do not know how to teach their children with our workbooks because they themselves had never seen this kind of arithmetic worksheets before. So, I decided to write a book to address the above two problems, one is to describe how I created worksheets in general, and the other is to show how and why Ho Math Chess sets itself apart from others. I would like to thank my students who had given us feedbacks during my writing many workbooks. As a matter fact I wrote a few worksheets for some of my students and tried on them and if they did not work out effectively, then I revised. Without these students' input, some of my workbooks would not have been materialized. I have produced unedited videos to talk about my worksheets and explained about their formatting. Watch my videos using the following links. They are very educational and one-of-a-kind. Frank Ho presents math, chess, and puzzles integrated Intelligent Arithmetic Worksheet. https: //www.youtube.com/watch?v=Td3SKp7cukA&t=262s Published on Jun 14, 2017 Frank walks the viewer through his unique and world's first math, chess, and puzzles integrated worksheet. No questions are shown on the sheet, only mini-chessboard, puzzle table, and his invented flat chess Geometry Chess Symbols which are being used as a set of the command language. Students follow identified square where and use chess moves to reach a puzzle table (information retrieval like cloud storage) to fetch its corresponding data. The fetched data is linked with the previously identified mini-chessboard to complete the answer. The whole process takes the boredom and mundane routine computation procedure out of the problem and replaces it with puzzle-like fun. Ho Math Chess Intelligent Arithmetic Worksheets This is the future style of computation problems that is students not only will be trained on computation to find answers they also are asked to use their thinking skills to figure out the problems by going through visualization, orientation, corresponding, analyzing, synthesizing, and executing abstract commanding symbols. The enforcement for the students to write the problems only imprints more impression on the number facts. https: //www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3wAMqo4qUE What is Intelligent Arithmetic Worksheet? The intelligent Arithmetic worksheet allows students to work on computations but figures out the answers like they are working on word problems. I have dreamed about how can I can create a type of computation worksheets which are disruptively different from the traditionally straightforward type of computational worksheets? Not only they have to be fun, intriguing and entertaining they also must be effective in learning results. This example is one of many examples which I created and collected them in my workbook called Ultimate Math Contest Preparation, Problem Solving Strategies, and Math IQ Puzzles Grade 1 and 2 from pages 28 to 74. The Intelligent Arithmetic Worksheets take the exploratory approach which trains a student to use more of his or her brain and, yet the problem is not difficult, so an average student can solve them with fun. I also created a video which introduces my math, chess, and puzzles combined idea as follows: https: //www.youtube.com/watch?v=Td3SKp7cukA

Ultimate Math Contest Preparation, Problem Solving Strategies, Math IQ Puzzles

Ultimate Math Contest Preparation, Problem Solving Strategies, Math IQ Puzzles
Author: Frank Ho
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2016-11-17
Genre:
ISBN: 9781988300184

This workbook is aimed at math contests preparation for grades 1 and 2 and has a separate answer book. All contents are in English except some headings for the purpose of selling in China. Only the knowledge of basic chess moves is needed in solving some of the problems. The chess moves can be easily learned in a few minutes with my inventions of Geometry Chess Symbols which show what you see is what you move. The are not many math contests for grades 1 and 2. The main reason, I think, is the limited math computation ability of lower grades students. Many North American students will not learn multiplication until grade 3, but many Asian countries and areas learn times table at grade 2, so there is one year of difference of learning ahead in China. This workbook has brought its standard to meet the highest possible math curriculum in the world so four operations of computation appear in this workbook. The earlier the students could master the skills of four basic operations, the more the students could explore many possibilities of word problem computation problems. With this in mind, how does the very popular Math Kangaroo Contest test the grade 1 and grade 2 students? How is it different from other math contests? The Math Kangaroo grades 1 and 2 Contest almost does not include the direct math computation problems which are very different from the math contests in China where direct computation problems could include skillful computation problems. I analyzed the most recent years of Canadian Math Kangaroo Contest grade 1 and 2 problems and they start to emerge some characteristics and categories, so I include here to help students prepare for it. The lower grade math contest tends to skew to the more visual operation type of problems. The problems could be classified as follows: Arrangement and sorting numbers Patterns of figures and numbers Counting figures or shapes or paths Cubes or cards math including rotation or folding Identifying parts of a figure or finding what part of a figure is missing Number puzzles including filling numbers into empty spaces Logic and reasoning problems Word problems Including some Chinese model problems All other problems which do not belong to the above. Many of the above problems are not typical problems appeared in the books where you can buy from a bookstore because the problems in the math contests are much more complicated and involve a lot of creativities. The above subjects are now included in this workbook. Our math contest books are suitable for preparing the following math contests or competitions. Worldwide Math Kangaroo Contests USA Mathcounts USA Math Olympiad Mathleague Math Contest Canada BC Elmacon Math Contest Canadian Math Challengers Competition Canadian Gauss & Pascal Mathematics Mathematica Phythagoras, Euler, Langrange, Newton contests Worldwide Caribou Mathematics Online Contest (USA Brock University) Chinese math contests Many countries' math competitions Worldwide Math Kangaroo Contests

Mom! I Learn Division Using Math-Chess-Puzzles Connection

Mom! I Learn Division Using Math-Chess-Puzzles Connection
Author: Amanda Ho
Publisher:
Total Pages: 316
Release: 2015-09-13
Genre:
ISBN: 9781927814802

I have taught students from grade 1 to grade 12 since I opened the Vancouver Ho Math Chess Learning Centre in 1995. I have personally witnessed on how some students suffered because they could not master some very basic computational skills. I do not want to create a workbook, which is about practice, practice, and more practice of computational skills. This has motivated me to create a workbook that would be very different from the conventional ones in terms of the way the questions are presented to the students. I wanted students to learn basic computation skills by using the carefully designed worksheets so that students can master basic computation skills in an intuitive way. These worksheets were being designed while I actually watched student's work and modified accordingly to their responses. I had an idea to create a computational workbook, which integrates chess knowledge, puzzles, and math in such a way that students could learn how to transfer abstract symbols into numerical values and then calculating the results by using puzzles-like problems. This idea may sound very simple but the result is much more profound - not only students learn to do math in multi-step, they also learn how to process information by converting abstract symbols into numerical values, which is important in learning critical thinking skill.One very noticeable computation format in Ho Math Chess math workbooks is the way computation directions are presented - it is no longer just a linear fashion; instead, students work on computations in all kinds of directions: top down, bottom up, left to eight, right to left, diagonally, and even circular motion. For example, the multiplication workbook computation format is designed in such a way that it takes the boredom out by using the format of multi-direction computation and multi-concept learning. Students could be introduced division computation procedure while working on multiplication and even equivalent fractions but without realizing that they are actually working on advanced math concepts and mechanic computation procedure beyond their grade level. One other example is that the factoring procedure is introduced while students are working on multiplication. These many embedded computational procedures included in the elementary level of math workbook will benefit students when they go to higher grades.

Mom! I Learn Division Using Math-Chess-Puzzles Connection Answers

Mom! I Learn Division Using Math-Chess-Puzzles Connection Answers
Author: Amanda Ho
Publisher:
Total Pages: 316
Release: 2015-09-13
Genre:
ISBN: 9781927814819

I have taught students from grade 1 to grade 12 since I opened the Vancouver Ho Math Chess Learning Centre in 1995. I have personally witnessed on how some students suffered because they could not master some very basic computational skills. I do not want to create a workbook, which is about practice, practice, and more practice of computational skills. This has motivated me to create a workbook that would be very different from the conventional ones in terms of the way the questions are presented to the students. I wanted students to learn basic computation skills by using the carefully designed worksheets so that students can master basic computation skills in an intuitive way. These worksheets were being designed while I actually watched student's work and modified accordingly to their responses.

Math Contest Preparation, Problem Solving Strategies, and Math IQ Puzzles

Math Contest Preparation, Problem Solving Strategies, and Math IQ Puzzles
Author: Amanda Ho
Publisher:
Total Pages: 584
Release: 2020-01-25
Genre:
ISBN: 9781988300696

I have been teaching math to kindergarten to grade 12 students for the past 21 years every night, 7 days a week at the Ho Math Chess Learning Centre based in Vancouver, Canada. I have encountered many problems, including some of the followings: -The traditional computation worksheet format is boring. Many research papers have been published to show us how to teach math, but when it comes to having some practice sheets, the choices are few and far between. None of them could have any earth-shattering styles. -I teach in an environment which is very different from regular day schools because I could have students ranging from grade 1 to grade 6 all in one class, although I tried hard to have a similar background of students gathered together, sometimes it is not possible because students have other lessons to go to. Most of my students have after-school classes almost every day. -Some students can only do very basic calculation sheets, yet some of them need to be challenged on advanced word problems, including math contest problems. How can I teach students with such a diversified background? -Children not only need to learn math, but some of them also need to do puzzles to activate their brains and increase their IQ. With the above in mind, I created many separate workbooks, including basic calculation, word problems, puzzles, and I even incorporated chess moves into my math worksheets. With all these efforts, ironically, I created an additional problem for myself, which I have to use 4 workbooks to teach one child. In 2015, I started to pay attention to Chinese after-school learning centre's teaching materials and started to compare their teaching materials with our North American materials. At the same time, I researched the materials from Singapore, Taiwan, and puzzles from Japan and Britain. These analytical researches have led me to have an idea to combine all my published workbooks into one large workbook, which includes math contest problems, IQ fitness, word problems, and chess and math integrated worksheets.

Mom! I Learn Addition Using Math-Chess-Puzzles Connection

Mom! I Learn Addition Using Math-Chess-Puzzles Connection
Author: Frank Ho
Publisher:
Total Pages: 628
Release: 2015-12-14
Genre:
ISBN: 9781927814925

What's wrong with the traditional drill computation? From tutoring point of view, there is nothing wrong to give them to children for practice on fluency and grasp of basics. However, there is something wrong form children's point of view that is they are boring, dull and not fun. Why do children feel that way? Well, the time has changed but the format of traditional computation worksheets has not caught up with the pace of the society. The future belongs to a generation who understands how to process information and the information might include digits, bytes, numbers, graphics, images, languages, symbols, equations etc. Children today might chat with others on the internet while downloading or uploading files and viewing movie clips at the same time. Multi-tasking and the multi-way of processing information seem to have come as a second nature to children, but is our computation format reflecting the way that children are living today? Certainly not, this is one reason why children feel so bored and lost interest to continue to work on the same "old" style of computation worksheets. These simple monotonic basic number facts computation worksheets are no longer reflecting the real world which the young generation is facing today or will be living in the future. The computing world children are facing today is much like a rich tapestry, where diversified fabrics and colours are integrated. Children today are absorbing not just numbers but an array of information like image, sound, music, symbols, spatial information, or even abstract ideas all bundled together and delivered through many types of media. Children today are not happy just working on pure number drill without any other stimulus or motivator. After realizing the importance of having fun while learning, Ho Math Chess has been embarked on an important teaching philosophy that is to integrate chess and puzzles into math worksheets so that children can learn math while having fun. Ho Math Chess has created a series of special printable workbooks to have a synergetic effect by integrating or converging arithmetic basic number facts, chess, mazes, and information processing all in one worksheet. This is accomplished through Ho Math Chess own trademarked proprietary technologies such as Symbolic Chess Language (SCL), Frankho Puzzle, Frankho Maze, and the Ho Math Chess training set. With this invention of math, chess, and puzzles integrated worksheets, a child is acting as a data warehouse manager and sorts, matches, or classifies data in an information environment which simulates a cell phone screen using an incredible variety of learning concepts namely chess, symbols, spatial relation, logic, comparison, tables, patterns, mazes, computing etc. by networking all kinds of information together. The learning process is much like to search information using the internet. Only when children have successfully followed instructions using SCL and, as a result, created a question themselves, can a solution be found at last. Ho Math Chess workbook is a multi-function workbook, it trains children not only their basic computing ability but also trains them to be an astute data warehouse manager or an excellent data miner by developing their problem-solving ability and critical thinking skills.