Parents often wonder how they can best support their child with maths and numeracy.
“Maths plays an important part in your child’s development and future and is one of life’s most valuable skills," said Dr Sheila Donegan of Maths Week Ireland. "Of course, not everyone is going to be an Albert Einstein, however everyone will need to be able to figure things out numerically throughout their lives and careers.
“Simply talking positively to your children about maths is one of the most crucial things. Leave your own experiences aside and encourage them to engage with maths without any fear of failure.
“Always try to find time to review and take an interest in your child’s maths homework," she added. "Stay in touch with your child’s teacher too and never hesitate to ask them how best you can support your child with maths. A good start in school follows all the way through into later education. Maths provides regular and recurring challenges for your child so encourage them to think mathematically about their surrounding environment, and most of all, try to make it fun."
Encourage your children but do not stress them out. A motivated child in a positive frame of mind learns faster. It’s OK not to know something. Not knowing something does not mean you never will.
Emphasise that maths is not so much about numbers as the patterns and structures behind the numbers. Once we start to see it in this way it frees the mind from merely remembering rules and processes.
Tell them that maths is about having the right questions, not just the right answers. Good questions include “Why does this work?”, “Will this work with other numbers?” and, “Can I predict what will happen if I try….?”. This is how great mathematicians have always operated and how some of the greatest discoveries were made.
Help your children to see maths not just as a science, but also as an art and as a language. Encouraging them to talk about their maths and to develop imagery to explain their thoughts massively boosts their ability to think for themselves, and to understand rather than just trudge through pages of meaningless sums.
Parents can also encourage their children by playing games and doing puzzles and jigsaws with them. This will develop their maths skills and build their maths confidence without their even realising it.
