Many people struggle when it comes to taking tests in math. Here’s how you can help your teenager do better.
Do a parenting self-check first. Next, clarify your role in their education. Model math-specific study skills so that they can internalize them. Teach your teens strategies to use during the math test. Finally, reassure them that your love is not dependent upon their performance in school.
As you can see, there’s a lot you can do to make a difference in your kids’ approach to taking math tests.
I’m a mom of three young adults and a high school math teacher (Algebra 1, Geometry, and Algebra 2), and I’m going to walk you through each of these.
Sometimes, I’ll have on my mom hat and other times, I’ll have on my teacher hat.
All of it is intended to help you and your family have less stress and more confidence in math!
Parenting Self-Check
This is designed to help my kid…why do I have to check myself?
Good question. Well, because I’m not going to spend much time on the test-taking tips you’ve been hearing about since your kids were in 1st grade….
You can get that anywhere.
I’m interested in specifically helping you with teenagers who need to become better test takers in their high school math class.
As parents, a little of that responsibility starts with us.
So, here’s a short checklist just to be sure we’ve got the basics covered.
- Am I providing a good environment for studying?
✔ Consider do they have the ability to go to a relatively quiet spot?
Or, have earbuds they can use if they do better while listening to music.
✔ Is there adequate lighting?
My kids usually prefer it to be darker in a room than I like, but make sure they have a lamp if they need it.
✔ To that extent, keep up to date with vision checkups. All 3 of mine wear glasses🤓😂–along with my husband and myself!
So when each of them, at different ages, mentioned having a hard time seeing the board or having headaches when studying, …we made the obligatory eye appointment.🤷♀️
2. Do they have practical and nutritious food options for breakfast on the day of the test?
You know, things they will actually eat and have time to prepare beforehand.
3. Am I setting good boundaries to encourage a good night’s sleep?
These are teenagers, so let’s be realistic.
We can encourage rest. We can’t force it.
4. In general, am I pro learning and the value of education?
I know this one might sound all touchy-feely, but it is just an indicator of the overall tone in your house. Don’t dismiss it completely.
Be Clear About Your Role in Your Teen’s Education
Here, I mean be clear with yourself as well as your kid.
Understand that ultimately it’s his education and his responsibility.
As parents, we (and I do mean we!) have to guard against helicoptering or lawn mowering. Both disable our children.
I’ve also been guilty of both at different times.😑
So, what’s our role as parents? Ok, that’s too broad….what’s our role in this situation?
In this, we need to guide our kids toward better study habits by practicing them together…but with the specific intention of the teen taking over the responsibility for her own learning…and not needing us when they study for math tests.
Don’t worry, I’m going to show you the study habits you need to teach!
So now that you’re clear on your role, be sure you express that to your teen.
Emphasize that the things you’re doing are simply to give them the tools to do for themselves…
I recommend saying some form of that idea every time you start a conversation about improving their math scores, at least initially.
You want your teen to begin to internalize that this is something he is responsible for learning.
It also communicates the feeling that YOU believe in your kid to be able to tackle this challenge!😁
Teach Math-Specific Study Skills
I’ve heard it a hundred times: How do you study for math??
I get it. Math isn’t a series of facts to be memorized.
It’s different!
In math, you study by practicing.
Let’s look at key points to help you help your teen:
Discourage cramming.
Honestly, I’ve crammed before history tests in college (sorry to all my social studies teachers), and I survived just fine.
I “learned” the dates just long enough to regurgitate them the next day.
In high school (and college) math, though, students will experience tremendous amounts of overwhelm if they wait to start preparing for a test until the night before.
We know that.
Our kids might not.
So, this is a conversation you may want to have at the beginning of a semester, and the day after the test during the semester.
The day after the test?
Yes, while it’s fresh on their minds of how much stress they experienced on the last test!
I don’t recommend reminding them about not cramming while they’re cramming.
No one likes to be kicked while they’re down.
And on the day of the test, the stress level may still be high.
Your kid will be much more receptive to this conversation on the following day.
Just my two cents’ worth.
Don’t ask them if they did their homework.
What?!
Yep.
Instead, inspect their homework.
If they say they did it at school, tell them that from now on, they need to bring it home and turn it in when it’s due.
Don’t listen to excuses about them not being able to remember to turn in their homework the next day.
Do they remember to take their cell phone with them everywhere they go, 24/7?
Yeah, then they can remember their homework!😂
This is definitely the teacher side of me now!
After teaching more than a thousand kids, I speak from experience: Kids who struggle in math tend to avoid the subject with their parents!
If you ask your kid if they did their homework, you’re likely inviting them to lie to you.
Just don’t go there.
So, what are you looking for when you “inspect their homework”?
Effort.
There are occasions when high school math requires little written work, but the majority of the time, there is work to be shown.
Out of a five day week, I’d expect to see work shown on four of those days.
Obviously, that’s not always going to be true, so go with your gut if you’re not confident about this.
One simple way to decide if there should be work shown is to look at the students’ notes/examples from class.
If they took good notes, the homework should be worked out in a comparable way to the notes.
You can also google or go to YouTube and see what work should look like for that topic. {Try typing in the name of the assignment.}
I have a YouTube channel for Algebra students that you can check out.😆 You’ll see me working out dozens of math problems.
Remember your role here! Talk to your teen about the fact that you’re looking for effort because that’s what they need to begin doing.
They need to be asking themselves this: Did I put enough effort into this assignment to be able to understand it for a quiz or a test?
Let your teen teach you.
Pick a problem from their notes or homework assignment, and have your kid coach you through a problem.
Remember when you had to teach your kids how to tie their shoes?
I remember that it was really hard to teach!
You really have to know something to teach it to someone else!
This is also a great moment for two things to happen.
- It’s a great bonding moment if you can laugh together because trying to remember how to do something you haven’t done in 20 years (like factoring) is tough.
- It will likely give you a better appreciation of the struggle your teen is having. It really can be so discouraging to not understand.
Again, remember your role in this. The purpose of this activity is for your teen to realize that if they can explain it to someone else, they probably have a good grasp of the concept.
Going forward, they might partner with a friend from class to Facetime and help each other out with questions.
Or, keep the lines of communication open by telling them they can always come teach you a math lesson if they need to see how well they’re getting it.😊
Look at vocabulary.
This is one you’re familiar with from pretty much every class ever!
So, how do you use vocab in math?
Go back to the notes from that day.
Look for the longer words, keywords, topic headings. Ask your teen what they mean.
My youngest child, Rees, (my baby’s a senior in high school!😭) has told me that this helped her a great deal.
She was studying a topic in Economics (I’m trying to redeem myself on the history story I told earlier haha)…and asked me to go through some flash cards with her.
I remember there were a couple of terms that I had no idea what they meant, so I stopped going through the flash cards she’d made to ask her about the terms.
She realized that while she could read about them and felt like she had an understanding, she couldn’t explain it in just everyday language.
So, she knew that she needed to spend a little more time on those.
This is another time when students need to think about how they can use this to help themselves prep for an upcoming test.
Remind them when you ask about some of the vocabulary…that you’re doing it because it’s what they need to do on their own.
Encourage the use of in-school tutoring.
By in-school, I mean see what tutoring your child’s teacher offers.
There are four main reasons for this:
- Their teacher knows exactly what methods she’s using and what will be required on her upcoming quizzes and tests.
- She’ll know what aspects of each lesson to emphasize as more or less important.
- She knows what your child has been struggling with and what type of learner he/she is.
- It’s free.
In lots of schools, teachers are required to offer tutoring on a weekly basis.
I tutored before and after school, depending on my students’ schedules with work and extra-curricular activities.
Some teachers are able to tutor during the day, such as during a lunch period or if the school offers a study hall.
Emphasize to your teen that most high school and college students go to tutoring at some point. Earlier in their school years, it may have seemed just for students who had bad grades or was even used as a punishment. Let them know that the majority of students in accelerated math and science courses attend tutoring sessions on a regular basis. Tutoring is for everybody.
By encouraging the use of a tutor (when necessary), your student is learning how to advocate for himself.
And that’s an important skill for every person to have.
Use the test review as a roadmap.
In the majority of high school math classes, students will be provided with a test review, usually the day or two before the test.
Have your teen go through the test review and put each section into 1 of 3 categories…
- really confident
- so-so
- definitely need to practice
Then, have them start with the so-so section(s) and pull out those notes and homework assignments. Practice a few of the problems that you know are correct (such as because it was graded or because it was an example from the teacher).
That way, students can refer back to the paper if they miss it…and find their mistake!
Starting with the “so-so” category builds confidence for the sections your teen feel less confident about.
Strategies to Use During the Math Test
There are several things you can talk to your teen about doing when they take the test.
- Do a brain dump as soon as you receive the test. For instance, if there’s a formula you have to remember, write it down as soon as you get the test so you have it when you get to those questions.
- Do the types of problems you feel most confident about first! Don’t let confusion set in over more difficult problems, keeping you from succeeding on the easier ones.
- For multiple choice problems, think about the problem and eliminate any answers that just don’t make sense. Then, do the work. When you’re finished, if you came up with a nonsense answer, you’ll catch it before you miss it!
- If some problems in a section are multiple choice and some are not, do the multiple choice first. It’s likely that the answer choices will help you to know if you’re on track and sometimes even remind you of something to do in the problem.
- Don’t turn in the test early. Circle problems that you’re not sure about and go back over those before turning it in. By the time your work through all of the problems, you might have remembered something that will help you.
Reassure Your Teen
Model a good perspective for your child.
While education is important, your relationship is more important.
What is your goal for your teen when it comes to math?
If you’re looking for them to pass, then remind them that C’s get degrees!😆
As parents, we have to keep our love and affection separate from any performance our child demonstrates–in school, athletics, the arts, etc.
They need our unconditional love. Pass or fail.💛
