Good numeracy skills are essential for ensuring young people have plenty of opportunities once they have left school, including higher education and career prospects. With this in mind, parents should try and support their child with maths as much as possible, and there’s not time like the present to get started. Even if you’re not particularly great at maths yourself, there are still lots of ways you can inspire your child to practise and generally just motivate their overall development. A prep school in Surrey have put together the following tips to get you started.
Help your child appreciate that maths is all around us by encouraging them to engage in mathematical activities on a regular basis. For instance, the could help you calculate the overall cost of your groceries next time you go food shopping and how much change you should receive if you pay with cash. They could also help you with the cooking and baking from time to time, as this involves measuring ingredients and calculating oven times. There are plenty of board games, such as Monopoly, which will also help your child with basic sums and show them that maths can be fun.
As with any aspect of a child’s education, confidence is crucial. Give your child a well-deserved self-esteem boost every now and again by praising their efforts and refraining from being too hard on them when they don’t get the grades they were hoping for. If you notice your child doing their maths homework, let them know how proud you are.
What’s more, you should try and set a good example where possible. Even if you hated maths as a youngster, try not to speak about it a negative light or voice your opinions. Instead, talk about maths in a way that helps your child see how important it is. If you need some more support when it comes to helping your child with maths, don’t be afraid to contact their teachers for some insight into the school curriculum, and ask for some suggestions of age appropriate learning resources.
