How to help your child by finding out their current maths level
There was an unexpected finding from our research project with Manchester Metropolitan University.
Parents struggled to accurately determine their child’s current level in maths, with nearly 50% of parents either unsure or incorrectly estimating their ability.
Parents often rely on parents’ evening or school reports to give them a sense of progress, but they’re normally framed within a small peer group, and at a high rather than detailed level. Perhaps it’s understandable given that teachers have an entire class to teach and don’t have the luxury of focussing on each child individually. However, it can leave parents unaware of their child’s potential or needs. And over our years of tutoring, we’ve experienced many parents telling us that their child has trouble with one area, say problem solving, only for us to discover the underlying issue was something else, such as not knowing their times tables which then manifested itself in problems.
Knowing where you currently stand is an important step on the road to improvement. Think of it like reading a map, it’s much easier if you can pinpoint your current location, then navigate the journey to your destination, knowing what milestones you have to pass on the way. Similarly, it’s much easier for your child to improve their maths skills and confidence if they know what their strengths and weaknesses are and can focus their efforts in the right areas.
It’s very difficult to get to your destination if you don’t know where your starting point is…
Think of taking an assessment as revealing your current location with a ‘YOU ARE HERE’ sign.
So, to help parents find their child’s level we have just launched a new assessment tool that allows you to find out your child’s level in primary maths – in only 15 minutes. The levels for each year group range from 1 to 7 with 1 being significantly behind and 7 being significantly ahead. Knowing what stage they’re at now, near the start of the school year, can help you better understand what support they need going forward.
And whether they are ahead, behind or on-track, we believe every child would benefit from PLYTIME Learning. So, if you would like to help your child, why not sign up for a free taster week?
