My child says they are bad at math. What should I say?

Not "no you are not", and not "I was bad at maths too." Ask which part: "bad at which bit — show me the question that made you think so." It moves the conversation from a verdict about them to a location on a page, and a location can be worked on. Then do one question together and stop while it is still going well.

Is math anxiety a real thing or just an excuse?

Real and measurable, including in first and second graders. Ramirez and colleagues found it related to lower maths achievement most strongly in children with high working memory — the worry occupies the same mental workspace the maths needs, so it costs the most from the children who had the most to spend. It is not an excuse, and treating it as one tends to deepen it.

Should I stop helping with math homework if I am bad at math myself?

Not stop — change what help means. The 2015 Maloney study found children of maths-anxious parents learned less maths across the year only where those parents frequently helped with maths homework. The transmissible thing is the tension, not the arithmetic. So keep the company, hand off the explaining, and leave the room out loud when you feel yourself tightening.

How do I know if my child is actually behind or just anxious?

You usually cannot tell from the kitchen, and the two look identical. The separating question is what happens with the pressure off: sit with one question, untimed, no audience, and see whether it comes. If it does, the problem was the conditions. If it does not, that is worth one email to the teacher — and it is information about a worksheet, not a verdict on a child.

孩子说「我数学不行」，该怎么办

「我数学不行」是一个循环，而不是一个水平。研究对数学焦虑的说法、关于「数学焦虑的家长辅导作业」的那项发现，以及这周可以改的五件事。

开始使用

所属系列：孩子的数学游戏

本系列相关指南

看不懂孩子数学作业的时候 — 你不需要去学那套新方法。四个完全不需要你会数学的做法、用一句话说清数轴和点阵各自在干什么，以及什么时候该给老师写封邮件。
真的记得住的乘法表 — 回忆、分散、打乱——三个几乎做完全部工作的发现，每天五分钟。另附四种练习方式对照证据的诚实评分。