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My child is struggling with maths: what to do
The short version
Find where the marks go, then trace the gap back down the syllabus: it may have started a year or more earlier. Rebuild from there, a little each day. Ask the school about Learning Support for Maths (P1 to P4) or Foundation Maths (P5 and P6) before you pay for anything.
- First step
- Three papers
- Each day
- 15 minutes
- Free at school
- P1 to P6
· Sources
P6 · PercentageQ14
A bag costs $48 after a 20% discount. What was its price before the discount?
20% of $48 = $9.60(marked wrong)$48 + $9.60 = $57.60(marked wrong)
The slip: the 20% was taken of the price after the discount. $48 is what is left: 80%, or four fifths, of the old price. One fifth is $12, so the old price was $60.
Why is my child struggling with maths?
Most often a gap: a topic or a method not learnt yet, which every topic built on it then trips over. Less often it is speed, worry or a learning difficulty.
Three recent papers tell you which. Each kind needs different help.
Not learnt yet
a method or a topic
P5 sums go wrong on P3 or P4 steps
A gap from an earlier year. It sits under every new topic.
HelpsGo back and rebuild
The four-week plan →Not quick yet
known, but slow or slips
Right method, wrong answer
One step is not automatic yet. This is where careless mistakes live.
HelpsShort daily practice
Careless mistakes →Last questions left blank
Not enough time, even for work your child can do.
HelpsTimed practice, once the work is solid
When to time it →Not just maths
confidence, or more
Has given up, or dreads maths
Confidence, not maths. Scolding makes it worse.
HelpsCalm, short wins
Maths anxiety →Still stuck after a term of help
Possibly a learning difficulty in maths.
HelpsThe school, then an assessment
Dyscalculia →Sources1
What can I do at home this month?
Four weeks of about 15 minutes a day, then decide on more help. You do not need to do the maths yourself.
Four weeks, then decide
15 minutes a dayWeek 1: Look at three papersCircle where the marks went. Ask the teacher which topics.
Week 2: Find the first gapGo back a year on that topic until it feels easy. Start there.
Weeks 3 and 4: Rebuild, in orderFrom the gap up, a little each day. Praise the working.
Week 5: Decide on more helpBetter? Keep going. Not yet? Talk to the school.
- 5minWarm upTwo sums your child can already do.
- 7minThe gap topicOne idea, a few questions, slowly.
- 3minThe mistake bookWhy did each wrong answer go wrong?
Stop while it is still going well, so tomorrow starts easy.
Where StudyLah fits
StudyLah does the looking and the keeping: your child practises, and every wrong answer is kept by topic.
What it does for the plan
- Finds the gap. Every wrong answer is kept by topic, as still learning, a careless slip or left blank.
- 15 minutes a day. Short sets with Lah, the tutor, marked as your child goes, with the working shown.
- Goes back a year. Topic Drill takes a P5 child back to a P3 or P4 topic.
- Watch Lah teach a wrong answer. No account needed. Three exam-standard questions to look at first: get one wrong and hear the working talked through, step by step. Try it free
- Then register your child, free. Practise P1 to P6 Maths a little every day, with every wrong answer kept in the mistake book. Start free
What free help does school give?
More than most parents know. Ask the form teacher before you pay for anything.
Free, in school hours
Learning Support for Maths
- per group, at most
- 8
- periods a week
- 4–8
The school picks children at the start of P1.
Continues, if needed
Learning Support for Maths
- per group, at most
- 15
- periods a week
- 11
Extended to P3 and P4 since 2023.
A subject level
Foundation Maths
- and a slower pace
- More time
Levels can change at the end of P5.
End of P4: the school recommends Standard or Foundation Maths for P5, from the year-end exams. You fill in an option form.
Sources2–4
Four questions to take to the form teacher:
- Which topics lose the most marks this term?
- Is it the setup, or the working?
- Can my child join Learning Support for Maths? It runs from P1 to P4, in small groups, in school hours.5
- Who else in school can help? Primary schools have Special Educational Needs (SEN) Officers, who give in-class and small-group support.5
Outside school, free or low-cost tuition. CDAC, SINDA and MENDAKI run tuition for families who meet their income criteria, and schools work with them through the Collaborative Tuition Programme.6–9
Is it maths anxiety?
It may be, if your child can do the work at home but goes blank in tests. Worry crowds out the thinking, and more pressure makes it worse.
Signs you may see:
- Goes blank in tests, then does the same work at home
- Says "I'm just bad at maths"
- A tummy ache before maths days, in WA week or before the prelims
- Rushes through, or will not start
- Cries or gets angry over maths homework
| Say this | Not this | |
|---|---|---|
| After a wrong answer | Show me how you did it. | Why so careless? |
| Before homework | Let's do two easy ones first. | So easy also cannot? |
| On a hard question | This one is tricky. Let's try again tomorrow. | I was also bad at maths. |
| Time it when | Wait when | |
|---|---|---|
| Timed papers | Your child runs out of time on work they can do. | Your child already freezes. Practise untimed first, then add the clock. |
If the worry is not only about maths, talk to your child's teacher or your doctor.
Could it be dyscalculia?
Only if the trouble is with numbers themselves and stays after a term of good help. A gap closes once it is rebuilt; a learning difficulty stays.
| A gapa topic not learnt yet | Dyscalculiaa learning difficulty | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it shows | One topic, and the topics built on it | Numbers themselves: number facts, sums, steps in order |
| After good help | Closes once it is rebuilt | Stays, even with steady help |
| First step | Rebuild from the gap | Ask the school, then an assessment |
Sources1
- Start with your child's school. The teacher sees the work every day, and school help does not wait for a diagnosis: SEN Officers give in-class and small-group support.5
- An assessment at DAS, from age 7. The Dyslexia Association of Singapore assesses for dyscalculia from age 7, with a written psychological report. Financial help is available for eligible Singapore Citizens.10
- A psychologist at a public hospital. NUH's child psychologists see children aged 7 to 18, with a referral from a paediatrician or child psychiatrist.11
- For the PSLE: access arrangements. SEAB can grant arrangements such as extra time to a child with a diagnosed learning difficulty. The school applies, up to a year ahead, and SEAB decides each case.12
Questions about struggling with maths
My child is weak in maths. What should I do first?
Find out where the marks go before you pay for anything: which topics, and whether the setup is wrong or the working slips. Ask the teacher, then give it four weeks of 15 minutes a day, starting from the first gap.
Why can my child do it in class but not in tests?
Often it is time or worry, not the maths. Blank answers at the end of the paper mean time: timed practice helps, once the work is solid. Blanks or slips from the start, on work your child can do at home, point to worry: practise untimed first.
Is it too late to catch up?
No, not even in P5 or P6. Find the first gap and rebuild from there, a little each day, even if it is a P3 or P4 topic. In P5 and P6, Foundation Maths is also there for a child who needs more time.
How much maths practice a day is enough?
About 15 minutes, every day. Short and daily is easier to keep up than an hour once a week, and it brings each mistake back while your child still remembers their thinking.
When do ratio and average come in?
In P6, in MOE's syllabus. The year before, P5 brings new topics such as Percentage; Rate; and Volume of Cube and Cuboid.
Is there free help for a child who is struggling in maths?
Yes. Schools run Learning Support for Maths from P1 to P4 and offer Foundation Maths at P5 and P6, and CDAC, SINDA and MENDAKI run free or low-cost tuition for families who meet their income criteria.
Does my child need a diagnosis to get help at school?
No. Learning Support for Maths and the school's SEN Officers help children who need it. A diagnosis matters for PSLE access arrangements, which the school applies for.
Where can my child be tested for dyscalculia in Singapore?
Ask the school first. The Dyslexia Association of Singapore assesses for dyscalculia from age 7, with a written psychological report.
What does dyscalculia look like?
Trouble with numbers themselves, across topics: number facts that never become automatic, sums that stay slow or keep going wrong, trouble with direction and space, maths that does not connect to real life, and losing track of steps in order. Only an assessment can tell it apart from a gap.
How can I help my child with maths at home?
About 15 minutes a day for four weeks. Look at three papers for where the marks went, go back a year on that topic until it feels easy, then rebuild in order from there. You do not need to do the maths yourself.
How do I help my child with maths anxiety?
Keep it calm and short. Open with two easy questions, ask "Show me how you did it" instead of "Why so careless?", and practise untimed before adding the clock. If the worry goes beyond maths, talk to the teacher or your doctor.
My child says they hate maths. Is that normal?
Many children say it after a run of wrong answers. It usually means maths feels hard, not that your child cannot do it. Short sessions that open with two easy wins, and praise for the working rather than the answer, help.
Should I get a tutor?
Perhaps, when the gap spans more than a year, the PSLE is close, or a term of help at home has not moved the marks.
Sources
Every figure on this page comes from one of these, read on the day shown.
- 1Dyslexia Association of Singapore, Identifying mathematical learning difficulties, 25 November 2025, read 20 October 2026An assessment by the DAS SpLD Assessment Services, whose registered psychologists assess learning profiles
- 2Ministry of Education, Learning support in primary schools (last updated 5 December 2025), read 20 October 2026LSM: P1 and P2 in groups of up to 8, 4 to 8 periods a week; P3 and P4 in groups of up to 15, 11 periods a week
- 3Ministry of Education, Plans to support students academically weaker in Mathematics and Science reach higher proficiency levels, parliamentary reply, 4 February 2025, read 20 October 2026Learning Support for Mathematics since 2007 for P1 and P2, extended to P3 and P4 since 2023; Foundation level at P5 and P6
- 4Ministry of Education, Subject-based banding for primary school (last updated 5 December 2025), read 20 October 2026The school recommends a P5 subject combination from the P4 year-end exams; parents fill in an option form
- 5Ministry of Education, Special educational needs support at mainstream primary schools (last updated 16 January 2026), read 5 November 2026Special Educational Needs (SEN) Officers provide in-class support and individual or small group intervention; LSM for Primary 1 to 4
- 6CDAC, Tuition Programme, read 20 October 2026Free for eligible students; 2027 income criteria; classes of 10 to 12
- 7SINDA, SINDA Tutorials for Enhanced Performance (STEP), fee structure, read 20 October 2026Primary: a S$10 flat fee; full waiver at per capita income of S$1,600 or below, or for MOE FAS, School Pocket Money Fund or SINDA Bursary recipients
- 8Yayasan MENDAKI, MENDAKI Achievement Programme (MAP), formerly the MENDAKI Tuition Programme, read 20 October 2026The S$10 registration fee was removed from Academic Year 2026
- 9Ministry of Education, Private tuition, parliamentary reply, 5 February 2025, read 20 October 2026
- 10Dyslexia Association of Singapore, SpLD Assessment, read 5 November 2026Dyscalculia: children who are at least 7 years old; one psychological report per assessment; financial assistance for eligible Singapore Citizens
- 11National University Hospital, Paediatric Psychological Services, read 5 November 2026Children and adolescents aged 7 to 18; a referral from a paediatrician or child psychiatrist is required
- 12Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board, Access Arrangements (last updated 11 May 2026), read 5 November 2026Granted to candidates with special educational needs, including specific learning disabilities; school candidates apply through the school, up to one year ahead
Now the practice has to happen.
These guides tell you what usually goes wrong. Your child's own practice tells you what's going wrong for them. StudyLah does the second part, and shows you the answer.