Q: I often hear moms say that their daughters struggle with math in later grades. I don't have the "math gene," but I never want my preschool daughter to hate math. How can I develop her interest?

A: Stop saying you don't have the math gene. There's no such thing. It's a myth that boys are destined to do better in math. Thanks to efforts that focus on girls, gender gaps in math achievement have rapidly declined over the last few decades.

The achievement gap between girls and boys isn't because of differences in innate math skills, say researchers, but because of how math is taught. Girls are often given less encouragement to develop their abilities, says Jo Boaler, a professor of mathematics education at Stanford University and co-founder of YouCubed (youcubed.org), a nonprofit that provides mathematics education resources to K-12 educators and parents.

To help girls (and boys) develop a foundation for math success, here are some tips:

-- Talk numbers every chance you get: When filling a grocery basket, say, "We need 1, 2, 3 pints of yogurt." Call out page numbers as you read books. Repeat the weather report: "It is 55 degrees now and it will be 70 degrees -- that's 15 degrees warmer -- after school." When driving, note, "On that road, we went 55 mph. Now the speed limit is 35 mph. We're going 20 mph slower."

Number talk helps develop number sense, which math educator Marilyn Burns describes as "knowing what each number represents and what its relationship is to others."

-- Read math-themed kids' books: Children's librarians can point you to many wonderful picture books that use humor, compelling characters and illustrations to motivate kids to think mathematically. Holiday House publishes many delightful math-related books for young readers, including several by former math teacher David A. Adler. Recent books of his include "Triangles" (Holiday House, 2014) and "Millions, Billions and Trillions: Understanding Big Numbers" (Holiday House, 2013).

Burns has authored or co-authored various math-themed children's books, including "How Many Feet? How Many Tails? A Book of Math Riddles" (Scholastic, 1996); "Spaghetti And Meatballs For All!" (Scholastic, 2008); and "The 512 Ants On Sullivan Street" (Scholastic, 1997). For a list of Burns-recommended math-concept books by grade, see the Chart of Children's Literature at www.mathsolutions.com.

-- Highlight everyday math every day: "When you cook, kids can't help but learn fractions," says Laura Overdeck, the advisory board chair for Johns Hopkins' Center for Talented Youth. "When playing with Legos, ask 'How many bumps does that piece have?' to get them multiplying the width and length of a block. When kids run and jump, quantify their feats of speed and strength: How many feet can they kick that ball? How many seconds to run cross the yard?"

-- Enjoy it! To emphasize that math can be funny and whimsical, Overdeck added math puzzles and riddles to her kids' bedtime reading. She compiled them into two books, "Bedtime Math" (Feiwel & Friends, 2013) and "Bedtime Math 2" (Feiwel & Friends, 2014), to get kids into math "one puzzle at a time," she says.

Find more resources and a daily math problem at www.bedtimemath.org.

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)

Q: Our middle school STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) Club wants to celebrate Earth Day by creating "green" guidelines for our school. The students can't agree on what that means. As a parent and STEM mentor, I'd like concrete outcomes. Do you have any suggestions?

A: That's a worthy project for Earth Day, which is April 22. It has the potential to change district environmental practices and increase student engagement. There's research showing that "healthy, sustainable schools actually save money and raise test scores while safeguarding our children's health," notes Deborah Moore, a California environmental scientist who helped start the Green Schools Initiative (greenschools.net).

"Green schools" share four characteristics: They strive to be toxin-free and adhere to green building practices in construction. They "reduce, reuse and recycle," use resources sustainably and make energy-efficient choices. Green schools promote healthy choices for students, such as "green" playgrounds and junk food-free lunches. Green schools also get kids involved in many ways, by integrating environmental education into the curriculum, providing hands-on experiences (such as planting gardens), doing research (such as energy audits), and involving students in the maintenance of the school and the grounds.

Looking at those characteristics, guide the STEM Club members in deciding what to tackle. A first step, suggest folks at the Green Schools Initiative, is forming a Green Team that includes representatives from school stakeholders -- students, teachers, custodians, facilities managers, parents and a school board member. The STEM club can organize and manage the team's work.

Next, craft and adopt a Green Schools vision statement that resonates with students. Prominently display the statement, which should be supported by a resolution from the school board, parent-teacher organization and other influential entities.

Have the STEM Club audit the school's environmental impact to identify top priorities for action -- from assessing school lunch waste, to finding inefficiencies such as leaky fountains or computer equipment that's left on overnight. (There's a useful auditing tool at greenschools.net; click on the "Take the Quiz" link to see how green your school is.)

Using the results, create a one-year action plan that sets such realistic and measurable goals as improving the school's recycling program, planting a garden, eliminating toxic herbicides and pesticides on school grounds or purchasing nontoxic cleaning supplies. Decide how to roll out and measure the plan over the course of a year. Work with teachers to incorporate lessons relating to your goals into the curriculum.

If time is short, encourage the club to celebrate Earth Day with an Arbor Day focus on trees. Students can begin by assessing the health of existing trees on school grounds while planting new ones.

"Trees are the ultimate green machines," says Luke Miller, outdoor living editor for Lowe's Creative Ideas and a green-minded tree buff. "Kids learn that shade trees can help keep buildings cooler in summer and that evergreens can help keep buildings warmer in winter. The lessons trees teach us are often a first step in developing a deeper understanding of our environmental challenges and priorities." (For free resources, go to www.arborday.org.)

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)

Q: Our middle-school principal says teachers will use "project-based learning" that answers "interesting questions" to teach Common Core State Standards (CCSS). I thought Common Core was a uniform curriculum. Projects sound like busywork!

A: I like your principal. He understands that the Common Core offers educators different opportunities to motivate kids and keep their attention in class.

A few facts: The Common Core is not a curriculum. It's a set of rigorous grade-by-grade expectations that students should meet in mathematics and English language arts and literacy to prepare for college and 21st-century careers. (Go to www.corestandards.org/standards-in-your-state.)

States, districts, schools and teachers create their own curricula and choose their own instructional strategies to teach the Common Core. Many teachers are beginning to use project-based learning (PBL) to help kids dive deep into a subject to develop understanding.

Successful project-based learning isn't busywork -- it's structured and purposeful. Students gain knowledge and skills by working for a period of time to investigate and respond to a complex question, problem or challenge, says Sara Hallermann, curriculum development manager at the Buck Institute for Education (BIE), a nonprofit organization that offers high-quality PBL resources to schools. (Find projects at bie.org.)

"I'm not surprised teachers are turning to project-based learning," says New York middle-school expert Nancy Hereford. "It doesn't bore kids. It's enjoyable and culminates in a big accomplishment students are very proud of. That alone helps make the learning stick.

"Research shows that students learn more about a subject and remember it longer through projects because they have the chance to apply their skills to real-world situations that interest them. Projects also teach students to use technology, work in teams, make presentations, think critically and solve problems together. These are just some of the skills that Common Core asks students to master."

To ensure success, BIE projects include these key elements, says Hallermann. They start with a "driving question" that students find intriguing. The question defines their exploration.

Projects delve into significant content knowledge from CCSS. They provide practice in critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, communication, creativity and innovation.

They require students to ask questions, use resources and develop answers. The process emphasizes the "need to know" -- showing students why and how the new concepts and skills answer the driving question.

Depending on age level and experience with PBL, students may choose the product to be created, how they work and how they use their time -- with teacher guidance.

Projects get students to revise and reflect -- to think about what and how they are learning, and use feedback to consider changes that lead to high-quality final products.

Once a project is complete, students present their work to a "public audience" that often includes parents and community members with expertise in the driving question.

Ask your principal how teachers choose the projects, how students are graded, how teamwork is divided, how long the project lasts and whether it takes all or a portion of class time. Find out if parents are welcome as mentors, experts and presentation audience members. And encourage your middle-schooler to join the team!

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)