Son is lagging behind in maths.

[BlueSkySunnyDay]

He came home yesterday, year 8, and told me he is year 6 at maths - he particularly struggles with angles.

Unfortunately he has already passed my comfortable maths levels, I was not good at school but have taught myself a lot since leaving. I do get very stressed on the occasions where I try to help, I am great with the more creative and english based subjects but just do not excel at maths.

So really - are there any websites/workbooks you can suggest that I could use to catch up (with slightly less dry learning methods now I am pretty sure I could do it)

Also what would you suggest for my son (bearing in mind he is a really hideous stroppy teenager)

I will check back - but may not be immediate response as I need to pop out for a bit

Have you tried the BBC? www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/
Looks good for both of you?

Dd2 Maths teacher suggested www.emaths.co.uk look in the student section, they do past SATS papers.
Also www.mymaths.co.uk look under booster packs.

My kids use an Australian website called 'maths online'. I'm not sure it's available in the UK (we're living in Aus at the moment) but it's very good and I'm sure there would be a UK equivalent. Are you sure it would be best for you to learn and then teach him though? If he has already passed your level it might make more sense for him to do online programs.

Thanks I will bookmark this page so I can check it whilst out.

I am thinking perhaps if he sees me doing it too he will be more receptive!

What actual NC level is he working at?

Perhaps you could try getting him a youngish tutor who he would get along with (maybe a uni student) if you could afford it. My DS was having trouble in maths but does really well since he got a tutor.

The school should have a login and password for mymaths.co.uk. It has interactive lessons and homeworks covering the whole curriculum and is an exceptionally useful resource.

Definitely ask you DS what level he is working at, for a child to say they are working at the level of a Y6 is very odd, as schools don't normally talk in those terms.

online : Khan Academy

giraffe - he didnt say that, he said 5 something there was a lot of posturing going on so I cant remember if he said a, b or c although I think he said a - slighly bemused that his level hasnt changed since year 6.

He claims to have "a problem with angles" He is very good he has always seen patterns in number which I dont naturally see but he is not good at all at anything involving shapes or that he cant see the use for (unfortunately the latter he does get off of me - Ive not used a logarithm in the over 30 years since I left school)

Alexis - I can do all the things I NEED to do practically for life I wasnt planning on teaching him, I just wanted to show willing to learn too following on from a thread where people were discussing why we think is ok to admit being bad at maths and not do anything about it.

I would talk to the teacher before I did anything else. A 5a is an OK level for year 8.

What did he get on his last report?

I got it wrong 4a

Don't do anything without talking to the teacher, honestly. Send her an email now!

Try www.cactuspi.com

They are worksheets, but they are a lot of fun. Each sheet takes about 20-30 minutes to do and because they are 'puzzles' your son should be able to mark them himself. Good value, too.

I would recommend either CPG or Letts revision guide or workbook for KS3. If you go the education section of a bookshop, you could browse through and see which he prefers.

Alternatively you could both sign up with Khan Academy and learn together. It has several advantages; it's free, the videos are really clear, it automatically sets work at the level you need, there are points and badges for encouragement and it's free.

Oh, and there is 31.4% off in March with the code 'LIFEOFPI' at the checkout.

And there is a prize draw to win £25 Amazon vouchers this month:

www.cactuspi.com/blogs/news/12782173-life-of-pi

dd's school use that mymaths site, does your son's school have anything like that?

If not BBC bitesize is very good.

I agree with Martorana. Have a chat with teacher first

OK will email teacher to get feedback - have spoken to him today and got a ton of attitude, he has a bit of a "rebel without a cause" thing going on at the moment

Teacake wasnt the Khan one American? Would that be suitable for use with English curriculum?

Like richmal I would recommend CGP books - from KS2 level - to revise and cement primary learning. There are also lots of game based websites to improve maths skills, which are great fun as well as providing repetitive practice (mathletics , mathplayground, bbc etc) if your dc likes computer games.

Khan Academy can have some things which are specific to the American curriculum and some of the terminology is American, (fourths rather than quarters), but a lot is much the same.

For one example, I tried teaching completing the square to solve quadratic equations to dd from the revision guide and neither of us could understand it. The videos on Khan Academy made it seem obvious.

I tend to dip into it when I am having difficulty, but equally I think it would, on its own, give a grounding in maths such that GCSE would be a lot easier for any student. Your ds could always just give it a go and see what he thinks.

Thanks I will get his teachers name tonight and email.

I do get a general vibe that secondary teachers are a bit jaded, I dont know if this is an issue at this school or if its across the career in general.