Confident Mathematics

There are many reasons your child may have lost confidence in maths. Maths anxiety, falling behind their peers , a bad test result or gaps in their knowledge due to time missed are just a few of the possible causes.

Many students find it hard to connect the maths they see in the classroom with their day to day experience of maths. They may be confident in the classroom but struggle with day to day applications or vice versa.

Here are a few ways that you can help your child to become more confident in maths:

1. Involve your child in everyday mathematics – for example, working out the change due at the shop, weighing ingredients for a recipe and working out what time the food will be ready, working out the budget for your next holiday. Maths is everywhere in our daily lives!
2. Practise fluency in key skills – is your child fluent in their times tables? Do they know their number bonds by heart? Make the learning and recall of these a regular part of your day, perhaps while eating together or on the way to school. These skills provide the foundation for later mathematical ideas.
3. Discover your child’s gaps – mathematics builds upon earlier skills. For example, times tables are a part of multiplication, multiplication includes square numbers and squares and square roots are needed for Pythagoras’ Theorem. If your child is not confident in earlier material they will not have the working memory to easily take on new concepts. Find out your child’s gaps and help them fill these at the earliest opportunity.
4. Look for opportunities to problem solve together – are you decorating and deciding how many tiles you need for your new bathroom, are you working out if the 9 or 12 roll of toilet paper is better value? Involving your child in these decisions gives them valuable real world experience for the type of problems that they will meet in the classroom.
5. Keep maths fun – if your child is anxious or upset, leave it for another day. Mathematics can be enjoyable! Look for games or puzzles you enjoy that you can share, perhaps you enjoy the logic of sudoku or you can ask your child to add the scores during Scrabble? Look at where your child lacks confidence and find fun ways to help them improve.

Do you have other ideas or ways that have worked for you and your child? Please share your suggestions and comments below.

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Thank you for reading my post, I specialise in teaching for understanding. I believe that succeeding in mathematics is best accomplished from firm foundations and through understanding how concepts build upon and link with one another. Group tuition allows students to discuss ideas and learn together as they explore mathematics in a fun and engaging environment.

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