Many parents feel lost when their child asks for help learning maths, especially if the topic is too complex or they have not learned those concepts in school before. We need to understand that maths is not static as we might like it to be. Mathematics is evolving, so the human brain and the ways we teach maths will inevitably evolve.
Sometimes maths can be daunting, particular with learning at home during pandemic lockdowns, and this is completely understandable, but sometimes this mindset is more related to how teachers, peers, and parents talk about it than anything related to your brain. Here are some tips on how we can help your kids with maths:
So, depending on your child’s age, you may need to incorporate maths into any topic you are talking about. You also ask your child questions like:
In addition, if they are faced with a question that they can’t answer, they will try their best to research more on that topic so they can explain it to you better. Letting them teach maths in their own way may spark insights and may even develop their mindset and study habits. Overall, you can help your child learn maths better by encouraging them and giving them a chance to change their mindset over the subject. As a result, they will be more confident in tackling difficult maths problems in the long run since they no longer dread the subject. Over the past decades, maths tutoring has been on the rise because more and more parents are seeking the help of tutors in advancing their child’s math skills and developing their study habits. Some parents think that private tutoring is rather expensive, and they wonder if it is worth the money.
You need to understand that every private tutor is not the same, and there are various factors to consider if a tutor is worth your investment or not. Factor that determine if a maths tutor is worth your money
You may want to check their certificate, especially if they have an education degree and a major in mathematics. Having the credential is proof that they are trained and capable of teaching maths.
In fact, they must be able to engage their students fully, which could help your child get better grades at school.
Therefore, a tutor who can skilfully involve children in the learning process is likely to be charging more than someone who has a lesser qualification and skills. So, investing in a maths tutor who has teaching experience will be more cost-effective in the long run. Keep in mind, a tutor with prior teaching experience can provide references and certificates. This can help you assess if they are a good fit or not.
That is why you will need to check their teaching styles and approaches. Hiring a good maths tutor will be more beneficial to your child especially during times of extended home learning. As a result, they will be more eager to learn mathematics and retain the information for longer. Many children develop their understanding of basic addition and subtraction at home, and this can be before they start school. That is why it is beneficial for parents to provide informal activities at home, so their children will have a head start when they start learning maths in school.
However, early maths does not mean giving your children the calculator during their playtime. Instead, we can help them develop their understanding of addition and subtraction through simple interactions. For example, we can inject maths through our stories or daily routines like counting steps as they go up and down the stairs. Other things we can help our children with will include the following:
What are the key maths skills for school? We need to understand that advanced mathematical skills are based on early maths concepts and methods. So, we need to build a strong foundation for these skills by introducing ideas that include the following:
Fun activities to develop your kids' maths skills Here are additional activities to help your kids develop their math skills
A growing number of families today are seeking the help of maths tutors to develop their children’s mathematical skills and study habits. In fact, getting a tutor will provide several advantages for both you and your child.
Here are some of the reasons why maths tuition is good for kids. Maths tutors are more qualified than parents Let’s accept the fact that many tutors are experienced teachers, and they are qualified to teach the Victorian national curriculum. While it is great sometimes to show your child your own way of solving a maths problem, you may not be using the method and language your child understands. So, you may confuse them even further. A qualified tutor will understand the current curriculum, and they are trained to adapt their teaching style based on the learning needs and preferences of their students. Personal attention will give your child an advantage A one-on-one tuition is beneficial for your child, especially when it comes to maths. In fact, when your child receives personal attention, they will progress more quickly, and they will be taught in the learning style that best suits them. This is particularly important during the Covid-19 lockdowns as students are struggling with online learning during the pandemic. Also, their concerns and questions can be addressed more quickly, and there is no pressure felt from peers and classmates. Maths tutoring will also let your child learn the concepts and skills at their own pace. This will let them understand the concepts more clearly, and that will build their confidence in solving difficult maths problems. Stress-free learning If your child struggles with maths, they are likely to hide it because they are worried about what their friends will say. In fact, it will be stressful for them to be in a classroom environment. Also, they may be reluctant to ask questions even if they don’t understand those concepts or stop trying to avoid failure. Maths tutoring offers a more relaxed learning opportunity and each session is commonly done in the comfort of your own home. This will greatly reduce stress and encourage your child to try new things and to ask questions more often, so they will absorb more of the information given to them by their tutor. Regular feedback As parents, we want to be regularly updated with our child’s progress, but getting the feedback we need from their school teachers is tricky. However, maths tutor can provide immediate feedback about our child’s current level and how we can help the tutor reinforce those maths concepts by supplementing the learning needs of our children at home. Overall, parents hire math tutors so they can help their children develop their confidence and understanding of complex maths concepts because this will help them achieve better results at school. The current pandemic that we are experiencing has impacted schools, school their staff and families with school age children, requiring parents to be more involved in their children's education. Tutors are also beginning to play a larger part, and many families have found themselves searching for a reliable Maths tutor in Melbourne. The National Council of Mathematics Supervisors believes that it is essential to change the way mathematics is taught in schools. Maths instructions should be more consistent, so teachers and tutors must plan what math classes should be like during these times.
Educators must also recognise the emotional, social, and academic differences of students because these factors will have a great impact on their learning. While the future is still uncertain, educators must now take action and determine what needs more attention. They must focus on flexibility so students can learn maths at varying speeds and levels. Why is planning key? Educators must focus on three critical areas, namely, advocacy, structural considerations, and teaching practices. These factors should be in the conversation of district leaders and schools. They must know what supports are needed and what is lacking in their area moving forward. The critical areas in a mathematics program
Schools should also require teachers to work together to determine the most appropriate priorities before teaching maths in the new school year.
For this to be successful, teachers and tutors must ask questions and analyse the activities and assignments of their students.
Advocacy The purpose of advocacy is to make the student realise that maths is everywhere, from gadgets to finance and politics. Therefore, educators should not limit mathematical reasoning to the classroom. Overall, students should be given the same learning opportunities, so families and the community need to get involved. We still do not know the final outcome of this pandemic and how long it will last, but one thing is certain – we are already in the new normal. As a maths teacher, you may remember the stress of being responsible for your students’ future, especially when they reach high school. In fact, there are various areas in which students need to demonstrate competency at the required level. Not to mention that stakes are much higher when you are teaching VCE.
That is why it is essential to effectively teach Algebra to your students to successfully pass this subject and be prepared to tackle higher mathematics. Here are some tips to help you if you are a teacher or a maths tutor.
Prioritising relationships is foundational since this will motivate your students to act within the boundaries set in the classroom.
You would follow up by asking, “What is the value of A and B?” The students will most likely give you a combination of number like 3 and 2, 4 and 1, or 5 and 0 since this will make the equation true. You will then ask a follow-up question – A – B = 3. Now, your students will see that B=1 and A=4 will satisfy both equations. Providing them with these simple problems will help them see the “why” behind some concepts in algebra.
There are also various YouTube videos that can help you and your students learn the features and capabilities of a calculator. You just need to type the name of the calculator and the skill you want to learn. You can also search the web, especially Google and create a chat with all the calculator basics you need. It is possible to upload all your references inside a Google classroom account. You can create a living document that your students can access, and they can even add their references too. Overall, these are just simple steps you can implement in your classroom or one-on-one tuition if you are a tutor. Click here to find out about the best time to find a tutor. Teachers and maths educators believe that engaging students in visual maths can help them improve their skills and bring their learning to the next level. During one study, several activities for learning maths facts were presented to several students, all of which had visual representations. Conclusions of these studies suggested that students are more engaged and interested in learning maths.
There is a common perception that visual mathematics is just a crutch for abstract mathematics. However, curriculum guides suggest that physical and manipulative sketching can help students learn abstract maths more easily. So, the widespread lack of appreciation is due to the misconceptions that visual maths is only a supplemental method for learning. In fact, a ground-breaking new study by Joonkoo Park and Elizabeth Brannon in 2013, found that learning occurs when a person uses various areas of his or her brain. Therefore, when students work with numbers, symbols, and analogy, they use different parts of their brains. This will develop and build their visual and spatial skills and may even help them boost their learning capabilities, especially when they are tackling mathematical problems. Additionally, researchers have found that training students through visual representations may help improve their skills and performance in numerical maths as well. So, visual training is a viable tool that can help students comparable to numerical training. Visual maths and its benefits In visual maths, teachers engage students with images and visual cues instead of numbers. Through decades of work with high tech companies, students, and maths educators, people are now more inspired and excited to see mathematics as pictures and symbols. For example, solving a standard arithmetic problem like 20 x 5, a teacher will provide students with a visual solution to a problem. So, each of the visual highlights corresponds to the solution inside the problem and this can help student develop their understanding of multiplication. In fact, pictures can provide students with a way to see mathematical ideas, which supports them in understanding difficult math concepts. Therefore, visual mathematics can facilitate a high level of thinking, enabling communication so students can see maths more creatively. Teachers and tutors can use this method to create mathematical excitement in both the classroom and one on one tuition. With any mathematics, teachers can ask their students for various ways to see and solve problems. This can be done by encouraging discussions and letting students see mathematical problems in a different light – giving them ways to solve it based on their understanding. If you think your child may need a tutor to assist with their development in maths, find out here about when to look for a tutor. Teaching maths is not a walk in the park. In fact, it is considered to be one of the most difficult subjects, especially for students who are left behind in class and need more support from their teachers. More on that here. Ideally, teachers would be able to customise lesson plans based on the needs of individual students. In reality, teachers do not have the time or resources to do this to the extent needed by many.
For tutors, there are standard procedures that you can implement to ensure that your students are getting the most of each tuition session, including:
Here are some additional tips to consider:
It is advisable to give students a similar problem to help them consolidate a skill they had some trouble with. This ensure that they have a firm grasp of the concepts or procedures to lead them to the correct answer.
Overall, these are just some of the ways you can help your students learn maths. Always remember, a good maths tutor is flexible and customises their lessons based on their students learning needs. Many kids and even some adults have trouble with maths. In fact, maths work and upcoming assessments can cause anxiety for many students. When maths becomes a struggle, how can parents help their children improve their confidence, as well as skills and understanding?
Helping our child with maths is not always easy, but even if you are not the best at maths, there are methods that you can use to help your child improve their skills. Here are some of our recommendations. Start in your home It is normal to feel frustrated, especially when you see your child is struggling with math. Sometimes it helps knowing you are not alone. Many parents and are not confident in their ability to help their child with maths, and the persistent lockdowns and online learning can often make our relationships fragile, and our levels of frustration heightened. It is essential for both parents and children to adapt to the new normal, which often means taking a break, self-care and family connection become the highest priorities. However, if your child is struggling with their schoolwork, there will be times when you are both in the right headspace to tackle the problems together, and hopefully come up with some accurate solutions. Even naturally talented students sometimes have a hard time with certain concepts and problems in maths. The most important thing to remember is that kids need support to develop confidence and to become engaged with their work. After that, the skills, knowledge, and understanding will develop too. You may find it beneficial to analyse your child’s work and figure out where the gaps in their knowledge lie. For example, some kids may be great with skills, but they will struggle with word problems. Some kids have good analytical skills, but they fail to use the right method in solving a problem. For some kids, the biggest challenge is having math anxiety and low self-confidence. They feel anxious about doing homework or taking math tests as they have an overwhelming fear of failure. In fact, they doubt their capability to improve, and their failure can get in the way of attempting their work. Ways to help with maths at home If your child is into sports, you can use football or basketball statistics or concepts to reinforce concepts and allow them to practice their skills. There are also several board games which can help young kids develop their skills in counting, addition and subtraction. Cooking or baking together could also help because you will need to measure the ingredients of the dish you are preparing. There are several inexpensive tools that can make maths easier for your child. Try discovering items in your house that you can use to create graphic organisers or refer to your antique clock when teaching concepts about time. You can even create an anchor chart to help them with multiplication or number lines to compare fractions. Hiring a maths tutor If your child is not responding well to your help, or if you feel overwhelmed by the level of maths understanding required, we recommend that you seek the help of a qualified and experienced maths tutor as they can provide one-on-one tuition in the comfort of your own home. Tutors can also see the gaps and tailor their lessons based on your child's learning needs. Find out here about the best time to look for a tutor. Most kids start tutoring during the school year due to low grades or lack of confidence. The challenges that many kids face is a fast paced curriculum with little explanation of concepts or in depth problem solving tasks. This can be a challenging endeavour for many tutors.
That is why it is best to start tutoring during the summer because this is the time when tutors have maximum availability and can tweak some of the lessons that their students need the most without the added urgency and requirements of a typical school year. How to know if your child needs a maths tutor Even if your child has figured out the answers to their maths problem, you still need to determine their level of understanding of the concepts they are tackling, as well as frustration while they work through their homework. If you think that their homework becomes a long and drawn-out affair without much understanding, you may need to seek the help of a qualified maths tutor. You need to understand that frustration is often the result of not mastering the basic foundations, which often becomes the cause of your child's struggles. Perhaps your child understands some of the basic skills but starts facing difficulties when required to answer more difficult math problems since they need more advanced skills and understanding. When your child's grades slip to the point of extreme concern, or you feel like it's too big of a drop of his or her recent scores, then it's time to hire an experienced maths tutor. How to find a good maths tutor If you are planning to hire a maths tutor, then it's a good idea to ask your child's teachers in school because they might know someone who can effectively teach your child in this particular subject. You can also ask your child's classmates, especially those who excel in maths, because they may already have a tutor helping them. We have several excellent Maths tutors to choose from in various locations across Melbourne. When to find a hire a maths tutor Many tutors finish up with VCE students during November, and they might might have some available schedules during this month. Some are quickly booked out for the following year, but others may still have availability. You'll need to get in touch as soon as you can to secure a regular session for your child. How often should your child have tutoring lessons? It's recommended that you start with a weekly session to get your child acquainted with his or her tutor, then you add more if needed. The important thing is to build rapport between your child and the tutor so that learning will be much more effective. How to get the most out of each tuition session As a parent, you need to know your child's current skill level and knowledge when it comes to maths. Encourage your student to highlight certain questions and concepts to be addressed by the tutor during their lesson. You can also require the tutor to help your child with all their homework or do some practice tests since this can give them an idea of where the problem areas are and how to address them. Overall, a qualified math tutor can help your child improve their confidence and motivation in maths, while also helping to improve their grades, and provide them a better chance of achieving their academic goals. |
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May 2024
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