7th Grade Math: What to Expect

Your child has survived the big jump to sixth grade. By now, lockers and backpacks may even feel like old hat. So how tough could a little math class be?

The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics says this is when kids “arrive at conclusions about their competence in mathematics…These conceptions will influence how they approach the study of mathematics in later years, which in turn will affect their later career and personal opportunities.”

For specific expectations, check academic standards which are available on the website for your state's department of education.

As a general rule, however, you can look forward to the following themes:

Mathematical Reasoning: Virtually all states include a standard for understanding math, not just doing rote problems. In seventh grade, this becomes especially important because in many states, eighth graders are now doing Algebra I. Encourage math reasoning by asking questions: How did you get that answer? How else do people approach it? How does it applyto real life?

Number Sense: In fifth and sixth grade, teachers worked hard to reinforce your child’s understanding of the number line and of key “operations” such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. By now, your child should also be comfortable with fractions, decimals, percents, basic graphing, and negative numbers. If these basics are solid enough, your child will be ready for exciting extensions such as square roots, irrational numbers, absolute value, and exponents. Encourage as many real-life applications as you can—trips to the store, for example, include tax calculations and sale prices which can give your young scholar an extra math adventure.