When to start GCES tution?

pinkshoes

Will she sit an exam at the end of Y9 to help sort out the maths sets the following year?

If so, act now!

Could you not help her instead? Set aside a 30 minute session twice a week, then use some maths software or various exercise books? The school could perhaps help you with software.

Or how about speaking to the teacher, find out which topic is coming up next, then work on this together to help her get ahead? If she is familiar with it, it will boost her confidence in lessons.

I teach physics, and one of my Y11 pupils is doing this, and is doing much better! Her parents cannot afford a tutor.

Also, get a copy of the syllabus, and go through what she can and can't do, rating how difficult she finds each one. This way you have a starting point, and could perhaps get a tutor to help with bits that she really strugglies with.

GwylimT

There are lots of things you can do without a tutor.

BBC bitesize
TES premade worksheets/explanatory powerpoints
Worksheets from school
Mymaths
Kerboodle
Coolmathgames
You can also buy the same maths textbook used in school and work through it.

However with maths, the foundations are extremely important, so ensure addition, multiplication, subtraction and division are worked on.

Maths is a key part of science, in her physics exam alone she will be expected to know equations without a data sheet, I can't remember how many are needed for chemistry, but of course data handling will also feature in biology.

cazs

hello007007 wrote: »

I have a child in Year 9, she is not doing well in Maths and is below average.


I had always planned on getting her some tuition before her GCSEs. In the past I was think I would start the tuition sometime mid Year 10 and have the tutor come once a week, for a year and half until her GCSE were over.


I am now wondering, as Maths is such an important subject maybe her other classes will be affected by her low abilities (ie maths is needed in science and ICT etc...)


So as my daughter is not doing well, should I start the tuition now? The tuition will cost £20 an hour. We don’t have £20 to spare every week, it would be uncomfortable but with some adjustments we will be able to afford it.

If she is falling behind now, I'd very much recommend starting the tuition now rather than later. The longer she finds it too hard/complex, the more she'll fall behind. I tutor in primary and even then I can see the effects of children not having got to grips with the work of the previous year.

*max*

cazs wrote: »

If she is falling behind now, I'd very much recommend starting the tuition now rather than later. The longer she finds it too hard/complex, the more she'll fall behind. I tutor in primary and even then I can see the effects of children not having got to grips with the work of the previous year.

The OP's daughter is about 13 now. If she hasn't got to grips with math, I dare say she never will.

Savvy_Sue

*max* wrote: »

The OP's daughter is about 13 now. If she hasn't got to grips with math, I dare say she never will.

That's unnecessarily pessimistic. It may be that she has missed something crucial, or just hasn't had very good teaching at earlier stages, or hasn't 'clicked' with maths. If she's lacking confidence or feels she's no good at maths, overcoming THAT could make a world of difference.

*max*

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

That's unnecessarily pessimistic. It may be that she has missed something crucial, or just hasn't had very good teaching at earlier stages, or hasn't 'clicked' with maths. If she's lacking confidence or feels she's no good at maths, overcoming THAT could make a world of difference.

Yes, it could. But it's very, very unlikely. People who were good/great at math in school, when I was there 25 years ago, tended to have a very analytical mind, and be generally good/above average/exceptional students. Nobody who was average/above average failed in math. That's pretty much the main criteria, with spelling. And nobody failed that.

arbrighton

*max* wrote: »

Yes, it could. But it's very, very unlikely. People who were good/great at math in school, when I was there 25 years ago, tended to have a very analytical mind, and be generally good/above average/exceptional students. Nobody who was average/above average failed in math. That's pretty much the main criteria, with spelling. And nobody failed that.

I almost failed my further maths due to a change in teacher and personality clash. Oh and the fact it became real maths as opposed to sums at that point. And i can assure you, with my Oxbridge degree that i am an above average student. But like your anecdote, it's not actually evidence.... With school mathS, you can get a long way towards a pass now by learning methods and hoping for the best, while not actually understanding it....

And it's one criterion, several criteria, of we're on about spelling

Person_one

hello007007 wrote: »

My youngest daughter (year 6) has gone down in English sets and my eldest daughter is poor in Maths.

Sets in primary school? Isn't that very unusual?

arbrighton

Person_one wrote: »

Sets in primary school? Isn't that very unusual?

Sadly they are usually ability grouped to push through to SATS

justme111

If she is struggling at year 9 likely there are gaps from before. Year 7 and 8 math is not that difficult for a lay person not to be able to do with a child. If money is an issue than you doing it with her is the answer. After all how could one expect a child to understand math that one is not able to understand themselves. It can be very hard to tutor your own children so I feel for you.