There is a noticeable trend among today's parents to keep their children of all ages busy with structured activities at all times. Sports, crafts, clubs, after-school classes, tutors...all of these follow each other in an endless hamster wheel of activity. Then, hours of school homework leave neither place nor time for leisure, genuine curiosity, or...boredom.
There is a prevailing public sentiment that math is something to be feared. Many adults readily admit their aversion to the subject, proclaiming a proclivity for literature or the arts instead. This math anxiety begins in childhood, as early as first grade and is compounded through a child's personal history of math fatigue and negative experience in math classes. No adult in their sane mind...
Why do children - particularly those who don't show any special affinity or aptitude for mathematics - need anything more than a standard mathematical education? If a child is clearly not headed for a STEM career - does math really matter?
