ADVICE FOR PARENTS · KS3 Maths support
Supporting your child with KS3 Maths
KS3 Maths builds the ideas that students will use again at GCSE. If your child is getting stuck, begin with one specific difficulty and a small example, rather than a whole page of questions.
A guide from Tutoring with Maurice
Ask Maurice about one-to-one online tutoring →The starting point: Ask your child to show one step they understand. Use that to decide whether they need a clearer explanation or a little more practice.
A PRACTICAL TAKEAWAY
Try this: make one fraction visible
Use a piece of paper or the fraction bars. This can be a short conversation; there is no need to finish a worksheet.
- Draw two equal-sized rectangles. Split one into two equal pieces and shade one piece. Split the other into four equal pieces and shade two.
- Ask: “How can these show the same amount?” Both show half of the same-sized whole: 1/2 = 2/4.
- Try another pair, such as 1/3 and 2/6. Let your child draw or explain it. If it is unclear, stay with the picture before introducing a calculation.
Find the sticking point before adding more practice
“I do not get Maths” is hard to act on. “I am not sure which way to move when subtracting a negative number” gives you a place to begin. Ask your child to choose one question from school and show what they have tried.
Listen before supplying a method. A student might know how to solve an equation but lose their way with a negative number. Another may remember a fraction rule without understanding what the pieces mean. Those are different starting points.
If neither of you is sure where the difficulty begins, keep the question to discuss with the school teacher or a tutor. You do not have to reteach the whole subject yourself.
Give important earlier ideas time to settle
Fractions, decimals, percentages, negative numbers, ratio and early algebra connect to many later topics. It is reasonable to revisit them when a new question depends on an earlier idea.
In the fractions, decimals and percentages tool, a student can see the same shaded amount described in three ways. The negative-number tool shows movement on a number line. Ask what changes in the picture before asking for a rule.
Course labels help you choose a starting point. Some lab topics begin with KS3 ideas and later introduce GCSE methods, so read the activity notes and choose the simpler activity where appropriate.
Help without doing the thinking for them
Try “What do we know?”, “Could you draw it?” or “Which step could you try first?” Give your child time to respond. If they need a worked example, talk it through and then offer a similar question with different numbers.
Notice a specific action: “You checked that the pieces were equal” or “Your answer fits when you put it back into the equation.” This tells them what to use again. If frustration is building, pause or make the task smaller.
Our Maths confidence guide has more ways to respond to mistakes and make a difficult task feel manageable.
When one-to-one KS3 Maths tutoring may help
Individual support may be useful when the same gap keeps getting in the way, a student cannot start after reading an example, or they need time to ask questions and hear a different explanation. Discuss the school’s feedback and support already available too.
Maurice is a retired professional engineer and STEM Ambassador with over 9 years of tutoring experience. His online KS3 Maths lessons last one hour and take place on Zoom. Families can ask about regular weekly support or a particular topic.
The free first assessment includes parent and student. Bring a school question, your child’s year group and a description of what has helped before. Ask Maurice about current availability and the price for KS3 Maths; the advertised £30 hourly rate applies to GCSE Higher lessons.