Many children have a misconception about preparing for a Maths test or exam. You can’t study if the teacher will change the numbers of the sums covered in class, right?!
Study the Formulas, Know the Rules
The truth is that the actual content that needs to be committed to memory is far less than for a content-based subject such as History. However, a child would not be able to come up with the Pythagoras theorem on their own in a test or exam. This needs to be memorised in advance. If a child is uncertain whether x plus x = x2 or x times x = x2, he or she has no chance of being able to solve algebraic equations based on this rule.
Keep a Record
Encourage your child to keep a record of rules, formulae and theorems. This is will be the summaries which need to be memorised prior to a test or exam. Once all the learning content is summarised, it reduces the feeling of being overwhelmed prior to a test or exam.
Practice, Practice, Practice
Previous test or exam papers with detailed answer keys are the best way of testing whether a child understands all the concepts covered and whether the rules and formulae are applied correctly. If a child does not have access to a detailed answer key, he or she has no way of knowing where they made a mistake or trace back their steps.
Success in Maths is based on consistent effort and doing as many examples as possible to reinforce a concept. In a nutshell, yes, Maths is indeed a learning subject!
Chrizelle Prinsloo is the owner of Kip McGrath Education Centres, Walmer. She has a background in psychology and has taught in mainstream and special-needs schools both locally and abroad. Chrizelle is passionate about helping children gain confidence in their own abilities and about finding different ways to help them learn.
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