Ojai – Words Count in Math

Submitted by Ojai Valley Scribe on
woman teaching a child math with an abacus

BiJian Fan will visit the Ojai Library at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 9, 2019, to deliver a workshop titled “Words Count in Math.” Dr. Fan teaches math at CSU Channel Islands.

Why does math trouble so many children? It’s the language! English words for the numbers 11 to 19 are irregular and form a stumbling block for children in counting and arithmetic. Unlike in other languages with consistent wording (ten-one, ten-two, etc. up to ten-nine), English masks the numeral’s base-10 structure, recurring pattern, and place value. This masking sets our children back up to two years.

This workshop will address this linguistic hindrance and offer parents remedies to give children a leg-up in arithmetic development.

In addition to his typical instruction, Dr. Fan also teaches math through origami and the use of the abacus to help students and teachers throughout Ventura County visualize key concepts.

This event is free and open to the public. For additional information, contact Ron Solórzano, Regional Librarian, at (805) 218-9146.

The Ojai Library is located at 111 East Ojai Avenue in Ojai, CA. Hours of service are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday.

Audience