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Author Bio: Stephen Hunt @FreeTrainTutor
For many parents, it’s a question that they dread – as shown earlier this year by a report that showed that as many as 95% of parents are stumped by sums for eight-year-olds.
The report – by publisher Pearson – gained widespread coverage, with articles in the likes of Are you smarter than your eight-year-old? How 95% of parents are stumped by sums for their kids from the Daily Mail and Parents ‘struggling with primary school maths homework from the Daily Telegraph.
The report also found that parents were scared of confusing their children because methods of teaching have changed over the years.
Mums and dads taking part in the survey completed a math test full of material taught to eight to 12-year-olds, with only one in 20 answering all ten questions correctly.
The stories of homework horrors soon come from parents when you ask. “It had been years since I’d done any math,” said one parent I talked to over lunch. “All of a sudden, I’m trying to remember how to do division to help my son understand.”
“Math I was ok at,” chimes in another. “Spelling was what I was never any good at – I’m still not!”
When I raised the question on Twitter, one parent replied: “Homework was my worst nightmare! I felt awful saying ‘I don’t know’ to my son!”
Some parents even steer their children away from certain subjects, it has been reported, because they are afraid of being stumped by homework questions from their children.
In this report from 2010 in the Daily Mirror (http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/parents-hinder-language-studies-because-198642), it was reported that one in three parents do not encourage children to learn a language, with 23% of those asked saying it was because they felt they would be unable to help with the homework.
Helping children need not always be so intimidating, however – with a wealth of free ways to learn available online, and all kinds of ways for parents to connect with one another to share good advice and tips.
Our own site – http://www.free-training-tutorial.com/ – is one such site, including math games, typing training, sections on grammar, spelling and vocabulary, as well as a life skills section, and a creative writing course. There is also a section devoted to Microsoft Office Training, which can be as useful for adults as for children. The site covers a range of ages, from kindergarten age through to early teenage years.
For parents who have not studied in a long time, it can be reassuring to be able to sit with a child as they learn the basics in a relaxed way online – and might just make them feel less fearful when their child asks for that helping hand.
You can follow us on Twitter @freetraintutor or find us on Facebook at the Free Training Tutorial group. We’d love to hear your own tips for dealing with homework horrors and will be happy to share them on to others!