How to help your child with maths
6 min read · updated 2026-09-01
Maths homework is where household peace goes to die, usually because helping looks like explaining, and explaining to a frustrated child rarely lands. Here is what actually helps, drawn from what our tutors see across hundreds of students.
Ask questions instead of giving answers
The most powerful move is a question: 'What is the question asking you to find?', 'What do you know so far?', 'What did your teacher do in the example?' You are teaching the habit of starting, which is where most homework stalls. Never jump straight to the method; the struggle before the hint is where learning happens.
Build number sense in daily life
Percentages at the shop till, ratios while cooking, time calculations on journeys: two minutes of casual maths a day builds the fluency that classroom lessons assume. Children who struggle with word problems are often children who never see maths used outside a worksheet.
Protect the basics
Times-tables fluency, fraction sense and neat written working are the foundations that every later topic silently assumes. If those are shaky, every new topic feels impossible, even when the new topic itself is fine. Five minutes of tables practice a day fixes more 'maths is hard' complaints than any textbook.
When to bring in a tutor
If homework battles are constant, if the child says 'I'm just bad at maths' often, or if school marks have slipped across two topics, a weekly one-to-one tutor changes the dynamic: the parent goes back to being the parent. The two free demo classes exist so you can test whether that fits before paying anything.
FAQs
Should I explain the way their teacher does?＋
If you know their method, yes. If you learned a different method, your explanation can confuse rather than help; ask them to show you their class example and build from that.
My child says they hate maths. Is tutoring pointless?＋
Not at all, but start differently: a good tutor first rebuilds confidence with achievable wins. Children who feel competent stop hating the subject remarkably quickly.
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