how can i help dd 8 who is struggling with maths, any ideas?

[CHUNKYMUNKEY]

As the title says, my dd is 8, 9 at the end of the month, she will be going into yr 5.

She is struggling with certain areas of maths, she is fine with times tables and division, but really struggling with adding and subtracting and i really struggle to explain things clearly to her, she just looks blankly at me.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how i can help her, she is struggling confidence wise?

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HTH

First I spent time with the teacher talking about what I thought she needed help with.

Then I printed off some maths sheets, cut them into small squares of 5 to 10 problems each, then we go for 10 mins at a time, (sit in my bed - a treat for the dc's) and do one. Some of them are very easy - too easy for her, others are harder.

We do this maybe 3 times a week. A small amount but I believe every little bit of practice helps.

And now she keeps an account book for selling her hens eggs and buying the food.

practising regularly is definitely key.

so if she's struggling with addition/subtraction, does that mean she doesn't know her number bonds? (i.e. which pairs of numbers make a particular total)

it's good to learn these, you could make butterflies to learn them - put the total on the body and then one of the numbers on each wing. so for 10, you'd have one butterfly with 1 and 9, one with 2 and 8 etc.

you could also write lots of numbers on little cards. lay them out face down and DD has to pick up 2 cards and tell you the total. if she gets it right she puts the cards in a pile, if she gets it wrong (only allowed one guess) she turns them back over and picks 2 more. keep going until she has picked up all the cards. you can time her so if she does it every day she'll get quicker.

I'm not really sure how to help with the actual concept of addition though. is she a kinaesthetic learner? I'm not sure what to suggest other than making it physical - literally getting a load of objects and using them to add up. using jelly beans or chocolate buttons may help :o

Thanks for all the replies, have just got back to this thread.

DD knows number bonds to 10, i havn't gone further that this, I have been giving her sums to do, only 10 mins per day during the hols, so hope this will help,

I have spoken to dd's maths teacher but as she got a 3a in sats this year all he said was "there are a lot worse than dd in the class". However she hates maths, tenses up when she has to do maths and she hates school because of maths (although she loves school if that makes any sense), if i can help her overcame this barrier she might be less anxious.

The number games that mathsmadmummy suggests are great to reinforce DD's learning and help her see that maths isn't scary.

I also have a DIY Kumon approach on my maths blog. It's important to start from the basics (1+1 if necessary) then work up from there.

When your DD gets to numbers above 10, make sure to highlight number strategies (e.g. 5+7 is the same as 5+5+2)

Hope this helps

Hi, You say you daughter is fine with multiplication facts and division facts. Of course multiplication is multiple addition but due to the way maths is taught in schools Yr3/4 many children miss the link. If they have previously covered multiple addition, they may quickly loose the link in Yr 3/4 because a lot of mental maths sessions focus on rote/repetitive learning of multiplication facts.

The part of the brain that we use to rote learn, is the same part of the brain we use for language and auditory learning. If your daughter is struggling with addition/subtraction it might help to go back to the real basic. She may be more a V.spatial learner so the idea of using number lines, both numbered and blank is good. Incidentally children who are V/spatial eventually have the upper hand in maths, but only if they learn As others have suggested lots of physical counting and combining of sets will help.

Alternatively your daughter may find memorising facts easy but struggle with the visual/spatial concepts, this is why she can remember tables facts but not do other forms of computation. In which case you still need to recycle to the start and cover the basics.

I teach maths and have been studying both the way in which maths is taught and the way in which children learn. There is a lot of research that suggests that finger counting is the precursor to higher level computation, so encourage your daughter to go back to using her fingers and counting on. There is no shame in this, its a simple and practical way to tackle all levels of computation even number bonds to 1000. It also demonstrates the base 10 principle and helps with place value.

I taught my son aged 2 how to count/add on his fingers then introduced 10X10 abacus and by 3 he was adding in trebble digits! I don't say this to bragg, only that it is important to lay the foundations with number bonds and that finger counting, although basic has been used throughout time and proven to work.

If she really hates maths, lots of games and practical tasks, hidden maths but with huge learning potential.

Good luck

Girls in particular seem to lose confidence in maths so easily when really they aren't that bad at it! It may be that some of the maths in school has moved on at just slightly too fast a pace for her to master it and as new maths depends on understanding previous work, over time, this can have the same effect as trying to build a brick wall where some bricks are missing from the lower layers! Obviously it is very wobbly and unstable. Try and work on the basics where she is struggling and use as many visual, practical methods as possible.

Keep reassuring her that all you want is for her to try her best, not necessarily be the best in the class. Try and do some relaxation exercises Such as slow deep breathing in and out for a few breaths) before attempting maths questions.

A good sympathetic maths tutor could work wonders in helping her catch up if you are in a position to afford this but even if not, don't worry as you can do a lot to help her yourself.

Thanks for your replies, I am thinking of a tutor at the moment as my dd struggles to understand what i am talking about, when i explain to her i know what i am saying but i sound so confusing. However dd is adamant she does not want a tutor so will do it as a last resort.

She does try counting on with her fingers but she loses where she has got up to and falls apart.

Forgot to add its mental maths thats the problem, i have showed her how to add up and subtract using the method i was taught (written method)and she mainly gets the questions right. At school they let her do this method but they are not really happy about it

In my DS1's school they put so much preasure on the children during mental maths sessions. He had to memorise number facts and recall a mixture of multiplication/division and addition facts. 30 questions in two minutes. He was happy with this but it struck me that for some children this could really shatter their confidence.

Using the pen/paper method is right. Schools are meant to teach various methods for computation mental/written plus also encourage children to find and develop their own written and mental strategies. The new thinking is that this will encourage children to think mathematically rather than just learn skills.

It puzzles me why the school would be unhappy!?!

Although the new written method for division of chunking tied me up in knots! my son has found it difficult too so he uses the same method I was taught. Its what works best for your daughter that matters.

I agree with sarahfreck that a good tutor would help build her confidence and skills.

Minimathsmouse - The school were happy for her to use my method at first. The Deputy Head who was my daughter's teacher in Yr 4 said he preferred my method, but had to teach the way he was told to. Then after a while backtracked and said my dd had to learn it the same way as all the other kids.

i do understand his reasons but the school's method is not working for my dd.

I struggle with maths as well but i have ways that work for me and can do everyday maths that matters i.e work out change ect, i don't think my dd will be a maths genius but she needs the everyday maths. I don't feel she is ready yet for mental maths but if thats what they're working on in class than i am worried she will fall behind

If you gave the same figures to 5 adults and said add that up, in your head as fast as you can. Three might panick and get it wrong, through sheer panic! and the other two will be correct, ask them how they reached the total, they will almost certainly have used their own strategies.

The school seems unreasonable. Is it possible for the new teacher or teaching assistant to spend five minutes with your daughter going over the processes she uses. She needs to have a quick and efficient method of calculation, written and verbal. However some people need to work on paper, finding the patterns/links and rules, only then can they start to use this to help them with mental calculation.

I was a bit like your daughter, keep working on a good written method. Now I use the same method in my head, as I do on paper. I never memorised the tables for example, but it doesn't stop me from understanding the concept, using it for any other calculation. In fact memorising the tables could actually be a hinderance for some children, because they learn to test, but have no onboard understanding of the principles.

I do so hope you get a good teacher in September who can help. It really makes me mad to think that some children are being crushed by maths. Its so important to have confidence with it.

CHUNKYMUNKEY - what area of the country are you? My son as a tutor. Could pass on her details to you if interested.

You could maybe try and find out why she doesn't want a tutor.

Often it is because
a) they are embarrassed about "needing" one. Reassuring them that lots of children have tutors for different reasons and that it can be kept a "secret" from her friends, will help.

b) they are worried about what the tutor will ask of them. Finding a tutor who is sympathetic and reassuring your child that the tutor wants to help and has been able to help others before, can be useful.

c) they don't want to have to extra work out of school and feel it isn't "fair" as other children don't have to. Strategies that can help with this can be: arranging with the tutor to spend some of the lesson dealing with their usual maths homework - they would have to do this homework anyway and it also can help the tutor see what your child is doing at school; arranging some kind of "deal" where they get a reward or privilege may work. ie if they work hard for (4/6/8) lessons you will buy them (item x that they are really longing for) or they get to stay up later on a Friday night or choose the tea/pudding for the family on one night or get out of doing normal chores on the night they have their tutoring - whatever would work best for your daughter.