Maths Confidence

Maths anxiety is measurable in children as young as 6 and predicts lower attainment throughout schooling, independent of actual mathematical ability — meaning a child can be capable at maths while being anxious about it, and the anxiety is what limits their performance rather than the capability. The practical implication: techniques that reduce anxiety improve outcomes even before any new mathematical content is taught. This course covers three levers that have good evidence behind them. First, using physical objects (counters, blocks, fingers, drawn diagrams) to make abstract operations concrete — the “concrete, pictorial, abstract” sequence used in Singapore Maths is a worked example of this principle. Second, saying the working aloud: verbalising each step slows the process, reduces errors, and removes the silent pressure of arithmetic. Third, separating mathematical understanding from speed — timed tests at primary level are particularly good at generating anxiety in children who understand the material but cannot retrieve it quickly under pressure; removing the time element initially and adding it back once the method is secure produces better outcomes than drilling speed from the start. The course also addresses how parents and teachers talk about maths mistakes, which has a measurable effect on whether a child treats errors as information or as evidence of inadequacy.

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