Though Math is a very important subject, many students face difficulty while dealing with the subject. Very often Math related anxiety exists in people who have a fear of the subject, get nervous easily, or feel pressurized while dealing with Math. Thus, if you are a parent, trying to help your child to deal with Math anxiety, here are a few things you can try, mentioned here by Etutorworld.
Confidence Building
In order to build your child’s confidence in the subject, you have to talk to him/her. It’s important to find out why they dread Math so much. You, as a parent, may not know what might have been the reason for this persisting fear. Maybe he/she are getting poor grades or finding it difficult to understand what is being taught in class. It’s important to understand their worry surrounding the subject. There are also chances that your child might not be familiar with the teacher taking the lectures for maths or not confident to put up a question in front of entire class. This lack of confidence can build up the anxiety and stress within your kid.
For example, your child might worry that he/she might get the answer wrong for which their teacher might think that he/she is stupid. It’s important to address such concerns. It is important to make your kid understand that failure and success, both are part of lives. You can’t expect to get succeed all the times, and which is why, he/she must ask questions without worrying about looking stupid. But it doesn’t end there, many advanced math students could use added support in simply voicing their thoughts or accelerating beyond current curriculum. There are math summer camps that are designed to propel advanced math students.
Hiring A Tutor
One way of helping your child deal with Math related anxiety is by getting some extra help for them. He/she might be trying very hard to understand the concepts taught in class but might be failing to understand it. In such situations, a little additional help will be the need of the hour. In that light, a tutor can take a more personalized approach while teaching your child. A tutor will repeat the concepts again and again till it becomes clear to the child.
Though you can take your child for school tutoring, one to one method of tutoring is the best. You can also help your child with Math after school. When I was a kid, I used to dread Geometry and that was the time, my Mom got me a Geometry tutor which worked on my weak points and soon my anxiety was over.
Many children find it hard to learn Math through traditional methods. Under such circumstance, it’s important to hire a tutor who can teach through non-traditional ways.
Get Them To Take Notes
Many a time, students feel anxious when they feel that they don’t have complete information about completing the Math problem assigned to them. In addition to that, there are many schools which don’t allow students to get their textbooks home. Under such circumstance, your child might be completely lost. Thus it’s important to get your child to take notes in class and to jot down the important formulas. These tips can be used before the exams or while preparing for it.
Even if your child is not preparing for an upcoming Math exam, get him or her to review the notes occasionally.
Take Your Time
When your kid is stressed out too much, get him/her to practice deep breathing. This helps to calm down the stressed out nerves and will help in decreasing their anxiety level. This is also important because students often make a lot of mistakes in Math when they are frustrated. It’s important to talk to them about the need to relax.
Teach Them In A Speed They Can Follow
If you are teaching your child yourself or have hired a tutor to do the work, ensure that the child understands one particular lesson before moving onto the next one. Since this becomes an issue in school, a tutor can help. Ask the tutor to teach the child at his/her’s pace. It’s important to note that children develop Math skills at different ages. While some students are Math-oriented, others might be language oriented. The later finds it’s difficult to fathom Math based problems.
Let the Take Break When Necessary
It’s important that you allow your child to take breaks whenever required. In the absence or required breaks, the child might become frustrated and agitated with Math. If as a parent, you feel that they are becoming agitated, get to take a 5 minutes break. In addition to that, give them something to eat and hand over a glass of water. A few minutes of break away from the subject can help the child to calm down. Make sure these breaks are productive.
Get Them Required Tools
It is important to provide them with the required tools so that they can understand the subject better. While some students don’t find it difficult to learn Math on paper, others might require extra help. There are lots of apps and sites that will help students tackle math, algebra, and calculus. Using tools like fraction calculators, decimal calculators, linear calculators, and even more advanced calculators like graphing and derivative calculators. These have step by step instructions so your student can check their answers and see which step they missed if it’s incorrect. Children like these might need visual help and other forms of manipulatives to get the work done.
Help your child ace Math.
