How can my child learn Maths easily?

To some students, Maths is possibly the hardest subject to master. With no entertaining stories or relatable real-world examples to sustain a student’s interest, learning Maths tends to require some measure of appreciation for logic and a dash of self-discipline to do well - not something that necessarily comes easy to anyone right from the start.

If your child finds themselves to be one of those students not clicking with Maths, don’t worry. The first step towards helping your child do better is understanding the reasons. After that, you can take steps to make them shine.

Here are the most common reasons children find Maths difficult, and what parents can do to overcome them.

Concentration and focus

Maths requires more focus than many other subjects, as concentration is needed to understand its concepts and apply them. One reason why your child is having trouble with the subject could be that they are finding it hard to pay attention for long periods while learning.

One quick way to increase concentration is to remove all distractions. For example, your child may try studying maths in a quiet environment, with phones and TV screens switched off. As disturbances of any sort can cause disruptions in studying, setting aside an uninterrupted period for learning Maths can significantly improve focus.

The value of patience

It takes time to grasp and apply each mathematics concept. Therefore, the best way to proceed is to go step by step. Children should move to the next level only when they are ready.

Naturally, this takes some degree of patience. Your child may get frustrated by the time required - do take the time to discuss the value of not just patience, but determination as well. Explain that it is better to take time to understand concepts thoroughly now rather than fall behind at a later stage.

Overcoming performance anxiety

Everyone knows how important it is to do well in Maths - it trains your logical thinking, helps you to solve various problems in real life, and more importantly opens up successful career paths in adulthood. As a parent, you may have drilled this lesson into your child many times.

But as much as it helps to prepare them for the future, it unfortunately can sometimes cause unproductive anxiety, too. Your child may feel overwhelmed by having to do well, leading to decreased performance.

To handle this, you should discuss with your child about the best ways to tackle pressure and how you can help as a parent. Allow them the chance to voice their fears and concerns about their studies - you might discover that they are more in sync with your own worries than you think.

Strengthening Foundations

When studying a subject, it’s crucial to grasp the basic concepts well to move ahead. This principle applies to all subjects, but none more so than Mathematics. Often, those with a weak grasp of the foundations of the subject find it difficult to understand more advanced applications, with the gap worsening as the academic year goes by.

If this is happening to your child, it could be a good idea for them to take a refresher course. Ensure that the basics are explained in a way that they understand, then assist them to catch up to the current pace set in school.

Maths differs from most other subjects because it requires a lot of practice, so that’s what they’ll need to do in order to improve. Completing customised worksheets in GenieSmart can help in that regard, as will taking in extra lessons in GenieClass.

By keeping the above issues in mind and taking steps to address the ones that arise, your child should soon be able to do better and better in maths.