Troy University’s first-ever Family Math Night brought together 47 families for a night of community, collaboration and mathematics.

Held March 15 at the University’s Extended Learning Center, the event was a joint effort of the University’s Department of Teacher Education and TROY’s Alabama Math Science and Technology Initiative (AMSTI) with the aim of equipping parents to be partners in their child’s mathematics education.

The event, made possible by a grant from the Wiregrass Resource Conservation and Development Council, benefitted Troy City and Pike County school students from kindergarten through the eighth grade and their parents.

Keri Richburg, project director and P12/Secondary Programs Coordinator in the Department of Teacher Education, said the feedback from families and school personnel was overwhelming as they praised the value of the information shared and the interaction between the children and adults.

“During the night, both families and administrators expressed the need for continuing to host events like this in our community,” Richburg said. “It is my hope that Family Math Night can be a catalyst for many more joint efforts between our University, community and surrounding school systems. I will be applying for the grant funds to be renewed in order to host this event again. If renewed, this partnership will continue to grow and evolve with the University facilitating this event at local schools throughout our in-service area using the school’s classroom teachers to plan and implement the activities for their students.”

In addition to dinner, family members and their students were introduced to hands-on activities that can be done at home to help students better grasp various math concepts.

“In the Kindergarten through 2nd grade room, families explored critical areas for each grade level surrounding counting, addition, and subtraction through math games that can be played at home,” Richburg said. “In the third through fifth grade room families deepened their understanding of fractions using pattern blocks. Families also engaged in hands-on activities involving multiplication and division. In the sixth through eighth grade room families used algebra tiles to explore and deepen their understanding of expressions and equations us in the hands-on model.”