My Child Struggles with Math

Is your child struggling with math? Unsure how to best support them?

Rest assured, this is a feeling shared by many parents. However, you shouldn't stand idly by hoping the situation improves: if you do nothing, it will only get worse.

Fortunately, there are solutions to help your child progress toward success.

• Encourage your child to practice regularly
• Study in a distraction-free environment
• Review their mistakes together
• Connect math to real-world problems
• Understand the problem and try to solve it instead of ignoring it

Nevertheless, to best help a child progress, it's important to understand the nature and cause of their difficulties. This is what we'll discuss in this article.

Without further delay, let's get straight to the point.

Causes of Math Difficulties

Why Math is Difficult

Math difficulty stems from a combination of factors related to both the nature of the subject and human psychology.

One reason mathematics is so challenging is that it is a cumulative discipline that builds upon itself.

We have written an article that addresses in more detail why math appears so complicated to children.

Why Math is So Hard for Children

Does Your Child Have Dyscalculia?

If your child experiences significant math difficulties, it may be worth considering whether they could have dyscalculia, as it is a relatively common learning disorder.

A diagnosed child can be helped more effectively.

Dyscalculia: Solving Your Child's Learning Difficulties

Preventing Math Difficulties

As the old saying goes: prevention is better than cure. It will be simpler and more effective to help your child progress before they encounter significant difficulties.

While falling behind is a problem, being ahead will be a definite advantage for your child.

How to Learn Math Easily?

Practice

This is undoubtedly an obvious answer, yet it is the most effective.

It's impossible to study math properly by just reading and listening. To study math, you need to roll up your sleeves and actually solve problems. The more your child practices solving math problems, the better.

Every problem has its own characteristics, and it's important to have solved it in many ways before tackling an exam. There is no escaping this reality. To pass a math exam, you must have solved A LOT of math questions beforehand.

Dwell on Mistakes

Possibly terrible life advice, but essential for improving in math.

When practicing problem-solving, it's important to work through the process for each solution. If you made mistakes, you should review them and understand where your problem-solving skills let you down. Understanding how you approached the problem and where you went wrong is a great way to become stronger and avoid the same mistakes in the future.

Ensure Understanding of Key Concepts

Your child should definitely not memorize the problems themselves. It's counterproductive. It's far better and more rewarding in the long run to focus on understanding the process and logic at play. This will help them understand how to approach such problems in the future.

Remember that math is a sequential subject, so it's crucial to have a firm grasp of the key concepts underlying a topic before moving on to more complex topics that rely on that foundational understanding.

Create a Healthy, Distraction-Free Work Environment

Math requires more concentration than any other subject.

A proper study environment and a distraction-free zone could be the deciding factor in helping your child study more effectively.

Working in their bedroom can be detrimental to a child's progress as the space is shared with their play environment and filled with distractions.

Try to Apply Math to Real-World Situations

Whenever possible, try to encourage your child to apply math to real-world problems.

When they study math in class, it can sometimes feel very abstract and detached from reality.

Seeking a practical application in real life can give your child a new perspective on mathematics.

Furthermore, looking for a practical application can help change perspective and better assimilate mathematical concepts.

Don't Let Your Child Skip a Question or Exercise

By ignoring a question, you give the child an escape from their difficulties and allow them to be ignored.

Instead, encourage them to answer all the questions on their homework, even if it means helping them or guiding them toward the solution when necessary.

Use the Abacus for Learning

Using an abacus helps visualize mathematics better, primarily arithmetic (which poses the most problems for children due to its abstract nature).

This visualization helps give tangibility to some of the more abstract mathematical concepts, thereby helping the child better understand them.

Why Use an Abacus: Numerous Advantages

Solving Your Child's Math Difficulties

Help Your Child with Homework

Participating in your child's education has many benefits. Parental involvement promotes academic success, improves social skills, and can increase self-esteem.

Set aside time to practice math for 10 minutes every evening. This will reinforce what they learn in class and keep fundamental concepts fresh when teachers introduce more advanced concepts. Do this even if your child doesn't have math homework that day.

Seek Tutoring Support

You may struggle with math yourself, lack the time to help your child with homework, or simply feel uncomfortable being the "teacher" at home.

If you fall into one of these categories and have the means, hiring a private tutor can be a good solution.

Finding a Private Tutor

• Word of mouth from friends or family
• Check bulletin boards at libraries
• Ask your child's teacher or school counselor
• Find a local or online tutor through a specialized company like Top Soutien Scolaire (...)