11 Plus Exams Forum

I have a yr 4 daughter who achieved level 3 in her all SATs at the end of KS1 except numeracy in which she got 2A. By the end of yr 3 she got 3A in all subjects except numeracy - still 2A. Now 2 terms into yr 4 her numeracy level is still only assessed as 3C, and she has totally lost all confidence in maths, and it is a major effort even to get her to sit down in front of a piece of maths homework. Most of the time she "forgets" to bring it home!! I have spoken to the teacher about this on numerous occasions ie the "forgotten" homework, her lack of progress, and increasing lack of confidence, and my willingness to spend time helping her at home, but nothing changes. Now it looks as if my daughter may get the same teacher again next year, but this time it will be in a mixed year of year 5 and 4 together because it is a small school, in a room which is effectively a corridor with the inevitable amount of disruption. I really don't want to move my daughter to another school, but really have got to the point where I feel it would be detrimental to her education to keep her there.

Am I getting paranoid, or is her lack of progress in maths not as bad as I am imagining? Her decrease in confidence is definitely not imagined!
(NB She has just been given a reading assessment level of 4A - is that possible for a yr 4 child? Whatever - it just highlights the increasing void with the numeracy!)

What has the teacher suggested?

There is some new material called 'overcoming barriers to progress level 2 to 3' - should be in schools next term. I would suggest you talk to the school because your childs sounds as if she would benefit from support.

Maths is all about confidence -

The teacher just says it's a bit of "a blip" and that she'll review it again next term - but I've been hearing that for 2 terms now. It drives me mad that the homework rarely comes home unless I go into the classroom to get it, but the teacher says she reminds the children to put it in their bags everyday. (I know that my daughter is not the only one to "forget" it. We end up doing 3 pieces of homework in one night some weeks, which does not go down well! I've asked for extra worksheets to back up what they are doing in class, but that has not been forthcoming either. I've spoken to the head, but she is leaving in July, so is perhaps not as interested as she would have been in the past. We are now considering private tuition, but it drives me mad that we should have to go down that route when she should be getting this stuff from school! It is predominantly a very good school, but I really feel as if my daughter is being let down at the moment.

As you say it's rather a long 'blip'

Try:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/ks2bitesize/maths/


or even the KS1 stuff to build up confidence -


also http://www.mad4maths.com/ looks fun.

Thanks - I'll have a good look at these websites tomorrow.

I understand 3b is what's expected by the end of year 4 so it would seem she's 'on target' and as she HAS progressed from year 3( where alot of children don't seem to make much progress sats-wise) the teacher rightly or wrongly wouldn't be too concerned about it I imagine. I think for the moment I would go backwards a bit to things she is confident with and work from there( nothing suceeds like success!), take the pressure off a bit and make it fun.

For a potential GS child you would expect level 4 by the end of Year 4 -

My daughter struggles with maths too. She got a 3 in year 2 at her very small infant school, then seemed to make very little progress (in levels) - I think she was a 4c in year 5. However, it did seen to click a bit and in the end she just missed a level 5 in year 6.

The think which really really helped her was learning her tables. Sounds obvious, but a lot of children don't know them, and it makes such a difference, particularly for children who don't have a natural affinity with numbers.


We did a blitz over the summer holidays between years 5 and 6 and she knew them backwarda nd upside-down. by the time she went back to school (So did her 6 year old brother - but that's another story!)

Hi, I agree about the tables, it is so difficult for most children to learn the whole lot, seems such a daunting task!

What I found helpful with my three DC was to do one at a time,thoroughly,(backwards,ie. 6x7 and 7x6) easy ones first.When you are focussing on one, say the 7's there is only about 3 to learn as you have covered the others when learning them.
As you move through the tables there are less to learn,and when you get to the 9's,and they think it will be really hard, you show them "the trick" in that the answers are all in a number pattern and each digit in the answer, adds up to 9.
I took it upon myself to teach all my children their tables,whilst in early juniors from Y2 upwards, and have found this to be the most helpful way of giving the DC number confidence.

proud mum x2 wrote:
What I found helpful with my three DC

Slightly off topic. PMx2 - I didn't realise you had another child...have you to go through the whole 11+ process again? You poor thing if that's the case!