A Fifth Of Parents Are Scared Of Their Kids' Maths Homework: Can You Tackle These Three Questions? | HuffPost Life

'Calculate the perimeter of these rectilinear shapes.' 😳

By

Life editor at HuffPost UK

|

If you put off helping your child with their long division and fractions then don’t worry – you’re not the only one.

A study of more than 1,000 parents with children aged six to 16 found a fifth avoid their kids’ maths homework because working with numbers scares them.

When mums and dads do give maths homework a go, the survey by the Open University Business School (OUBS) found half admit they get it wrong, while 17 per cent tell their children to ask their maths teacher for more help.

Kerkez via Getty Images

Nearly a third (29 per cent) of parents say they struggle with maths homework aimed at children aged six to nine, while 28 per cent say they can no longer help out with maths when their child goes to secondary school.

And adding and subtracting without a calculator is a skill one in four parents say they would not be able to pass on.

The fact that parents are avoiding helping out with maths homework doesn’t come as too much of a surprise, considering parents often share their kids mind-boggling homework on social media.

Can you answer any of these previous homework teasers that seem to have parents stumped?

1. The one about the dog show.

Find out how people worked it out here.

breastfeedingmamatalks

2. The one with the missing letters.

Find out how they worked it out here.

3. The one with the weird shapes.

Find out the answer here.

ManchesterEveningNews

On a more serious note, if your child is constantly struggling with their maths homework and often needs help to complete it, it’s worth arranging a chat with a teacher to discuss their development and the level of homework set.

OUBS joined forces with Bobby Seagull to champion a ‘Managing My Money for Young Adults’ course funded by the Chartered Accountants’ Livery Company.

Before You Go

Yes, You CAN Make A Family Walk Fun

Don't say 'who wants to go for a walk?'(01 of08)

Reframe a walk so it's enticing and exciting using words like explore, play, adventure.Who wants to climb a castle or who wants to find some treasure or skim stones? (credit:Alexander Nicholson via Getty Images)

Don't plod in a straight line - and back again.(02 of08)

Choose a wiggly walk and terrain made for adventuring. "It's all about keeping children's minds off putting one foot in front of another," says Clare Lewis. (credit:Stephen Lux via Getty Images)

Always have an appealing destination - and make pit-stops along the way.(03 of08)

It could be a café with their favourite hot chocolate or their 'secret' place like a climbing tree. Make regular stops to admire natural curiosities, make a den, whittle a stick or play in water or whatever you fancy. Encourage your kids to take photos. Clare Lewis's family always take 'scroggin'; a New Zealand name for a hikers' mix of nuts and seeds, dried fruit and chocolate to keep energy levels up. (credit:ArtMarie via Getty Images)

Join forces with another family or get the kids to bring their friends.(04 of08)

Children love the sociability of a walk and bringing friends increases their activity as they challenge each other to jump the highest or widest, splash in puddles, climb trees or find the best stick. (credit:Alistair Berg via Getty Images)

Walk together in a chatty clod, not a single line with you barking 'come on, keep up'(05 of08)

There may be times you have to walk in a line, but take turns with who's the leader. Also, let your children choose the route (within reason!). (credit:Bounce via Getty Images)

Play games as you go.(06 of08)

Hide-and-seek, capture the flag or ambushes - sending kids on ahead so they can jump out on you - are all favourites. Bring a ball or a Frisbee to play with too. (credit:JLPH via Getty Images)

Turn your walk into a treasure hunt. Or an obstacle course.(07 of08)

Children love places to clamber over like a rocky beach or challenges like climbing trees or jumping over streams. Challenge children to touch that tree and run back, hopscotch between the pavement cracks or run along the low wall. "You could go on a shape walk, finding stones, shells and leaves that are all the same shape," suggests Clare Lewis, co-author of Adventure Walks for Families in and Around London. (credit:Imgorthand via Getty Images)

End on a high.(08 of08)

Match a walk to your kids' ages. You don't want want to leave them exhausted. Talk up what fun you had, so next time you suggest an adventure walk they leap at the chance. (credit:ArtMarie via Getty Images)

Suggest a correction

|