Helping a struggling kid in math

amother

Sat, Nov 04 2023, 10:57 pm

my child is in 5th grade and is having a really hard time in school this year. it seems that math is a big issue for him. He has a really hard time following, and then he gets lost, frustrated, and in turn, acts disruptive. I think he is missing some basic math skills that he lost out on due to 1st grade/covid and missing school.

I don't think a tutor is really helpful-- I think that for this particular child, that will just be a band-aid. I think he needs to relearn math skills from the beginning (or close to the beginning) so he can build on them. has anyone ever done something like this with their kid? Or any other suggestions?

amother

Sapphire

Sat, Nov 04 2023, 11:09 pm

I'm a math teacher and yes, the kids all have gaps from COVID because you can't teach math 100% online.
Are you able to invest in a homeschooling program or do you not allow him on internet-enabled devices? If you are able, enroll him in one of these math programs and start him at the bottom. If you're physically sitting with him and explaining, and then practicing the examples with him he can move up by grade level until he's caught up. It'll be a lot of work on your end but worth the time and money.

amother

Valerian

Sat, Nov 04 2023, 11:15 pm

amother Sapphire wrote:

Not op
But please recommend which program
Link appreciated

TwinsMommy

Sun, Nov 05 2023, 12:12 am

Khan Academy is free and really good for all levels. My son is homeschooling with edgenuity currently and is doing high school honors math--- it's different than Khan, but similar in some ways.

amother

Electricblue

Sun, Nov 05 2023, 12:31 am

Why would a tutor not be helpful?
Get a good tutor that would teach him using a bottom-up approach... starting with basic number sense and work your way up...

I haven't done this with my kids, but I've done this with my clients and it worked very well bh. If you are in NYC, you might want to apply for SETSS services.

amother

Ballota

Sun, Nov 05 2023, 12:33 am

I'm a tutor. What might be helpful is for him to get a tutor with a dual goals.
1. Let him split his time in half. Half of the session you build him from bottom up. You make sure his basic addition, sub, mult, division, is strong.

2. The other half is to teach him what he is learning in class. (I prefer preparing the kid the material ahead rather than always reviewing what was done in class.) He needs to make it in the class. He should give him hints or a maybe a mult chart that he can take to class with him so that till his skills are strong he should be able to learn the process of whatever he is learning in class.

This is only if you feel that he is capable of doing it, but he has gaps. If math is hard for him in general and as much as he will practice, he still might not keep up then I would probably take a different approach . G'luck.

amother

Sun, Nov 05 2023, 7:51 am

amother Sapphire wrote:

.
Are you able to invest in a homeschooling program or do you not allow him on internet-enabled devices? I If you are able, enroll him in one of these math programs and start him at the bottom

Can you recommend a program?

Quote:

m a tutor. What might be helpful is for him to get a tutor with a dual goals.
1. Let him split his time in half. Half of the session you build him from bottom up. You make sure his basic addition, sub, mult, division, is strong.

2. The other half is to teach him what he is learning in class. ( prefer preparing the kid the material ahead rather than always reviewing what was done in class.) He needs to make it in the class. He should give him hints or a maybe a mult chart that he can take to class with him so that till his skills are strong he should be able to learn the process of whatever he is learning in class.

this is a really good idea. I need to make some calls and see if I can find someone to learn with him. Ideally, I don't want him sitting in math right now, because I think the negativity is spiraling out of control with him, so I would want to pull him out temporarily.