Top Tips for Teaching Your Kids Maths
Maths doesn’t come naturally to every single child; some are more creative or sporty and others prefer to read. While we can’t expect our children to be absolutely brilliant at every school subject, there are ways we can help enhance their numeracy skills at home, giving them a push in the right direction where their education is concerned. While you may lack confidence in your own mathematical skills or feel concerned about your teaching methods when it comes to helping your child, there are lots of everyday activities you can use instead. An independent school in London have prepared the following tips below.
Learning starts with the right attitude. Your child will never be able to overcome any maths-related hurdles if they think it’s impossibly hard. With that said, try and demonstrate a positive attitude when talking with your child about math so that they can replicate the same outlook.With that said, try and demonstrate a positive attitude when talking about maths with your child so that they can replicate the same outlook. Remind them that maths is all around us; we use it when paying for things at a shop or measuring ingredients when baking a cake. We even use it when playing games like Monopoly. The more your child gets used to the fact that maths is crucial for everyday life, the easier it will be for them to change their attitude towards learning it.
Speak to your child’s teachers and ask them for some recommendations on age appropriate learning resources. This could be workbooks, or something more entertaining like a game that can be played on a smartphone/tablet. If your child is learning their times tables in school, they might find it helpful if you stuck a poster up somewhere in the house, like next to their desk. Regularly looking at the educational poster will help them memorise their times tables and generally understand multiplication.
For younger children, there are lots of fantastic nursery rhymes that help them learn how to count. “Ten Green Bottles” is just one of many examples, and you should be able to find a sing-along version on YouTube. If your child goes to nursery or even a Mother and Toddler group, this is the sort of activity they will take part in to help them with their numeracy skills. You should also encourage them to play with different shapes and other STEM-related toys to stimulate their learning.
If you’re struggling, it might be worth looking into hiring a private tutor to help your child with maths, especially if they have exams coming up. Don’t be too hard on them if they don’t get there straight away, as this will only deter them further. Instead, try and be optimistic and let them know that you’re proud of them for trying their best.
