How to Help Your Child With Maths Homework Without Doing It for Them

You Don't Need to Be a Maths Expert

Most parents want to help with maths homework but worry about two things: teaching the "wrong method" and accidentally doing the work for their child. Both are valid concerns. Here are practical strategies that help without creating either problem.

1. Ask Questions Instead of Explaining

When your child is stuck, resist the urge to show them how to do it. Instead, ask:

• "What do you think the question is asking you to find?"
• "Is there a similar question you did in class that might help?"
• "What's the first step you'd try?"
• "Where exactly do you get stuck?"

These questions force the child to think rather than passively watch you solve it. Even if they can't answer, the process of trying to articulate where they're confused is valuable.

2. Don't Worry About Methods

Schools teach methods that may look different from how you learned — grid multiplication, bar modelling, chunking for division. If your child says "that's not how we do it," believe them. Ask them to show you their method first. Your job isn't to teach a method — it's to help them apply the one they've been taught.

3. Normalise Getting Stuck

Children who see their parents struggle with a problem and work through it learn that difficulty is normal, not a sign of failure. You can say "I'm not sure how to do this either — let's figure it out together" without undermining your authority. It models exactly the attitude you want your child to have.

4. Use Concrete Examples

If your child doesn't understand a concept, try making it physical:

• Fractions: Cut a pizza, fold paper, divide sweets
• Percentages: Work out discounts on real shopping
• Measurement: Measure rooms, furniture, cooking ingredients
• Time: Calculate how long until an event, journey times

Connecting abstract maths to real situations often makes it click in a way that worksheets don't.

5. Know When to Stop

If homework is taking much longer than expected, if your child is in tears, or if neither of you can work out what the question is asking — stop. Write a note to the teacher saying your child tried but found it difficult. Teachers need to know when a topic hasn't landed, and forcing a miserable child through problems they can't do is counterproductive.

6. Consider a Tutor for Ongoing Gaps

If homework battles are a weekly event, the problem probably isn't the homework — it's a gap in understanding that's making everything harder than it should be. A maths tutor can identify and fix the underlying issue, which makes homework less stressful for everyone.