1. Find the gap, don't drill the symptom
A child failing at long division usually hasn't failed at long division , they're shaky on times tables or subtraction, so every step is slow and error-prone. Struggles almost always trace back to an earlier skill that never became automatic.
Work backwards from where it breaks down. If multi-digit multiplication is hard, check single facts. If those are slow, check whether the child understands multiplication as equal groups at all. Keep stepping back until you reach something they can do comfortably , that is where you start.
2. Go back to concrete, then pictures, then numbers
The most reliable way to rebuild a shaky concept is the concrete-pictorial-abstract sequence: first with objects they can move (counters, blocks, coins), then with a drawing or diagram, and only then with the bare numbers.
A child who 'can't do' subtraction with regrouping can almost always do it with base-ten blocks. Once the physical action makes sense, the written method becomes a record of something they already understand, instead of a set of rules to memorise.
3. Build fact fluency , slow facts make everything hard
If number bonds and times tables aren't automatic, every bigger problem eats up working memory on the small steps, and the child runs out of room to think. Fluency in the basics is what frees them to tackle harder maths.
- Practise one small set at a time (number bonds to 10, then one times table) until recall is instant.
- Keep sessions short , five minutes daily beats an hour once a week.
- Use games, flashcards and quick verbal quizzes, not long worksheets, for the recall part.
4. Keep it short, winnable and low-stress
Maths anxiety is real and it blocks learning , a stressed brain can't reason well. The goal of each session is to end on a success, not to cover a quota. Give problems the child can mostly do, with just a little stretch.
Praise the effort and the strategy ('you lined up the columns really carefully'), not being 'smart'. Ten focused, calm minutes a day rebuilds both skill and confidence faster than a long, tense session.
5. Practise with worksheets that match the gap
Once you know the gap, practise it directly at the right level , not the child's grade, but the level they can succeed at , then move up. SproutSheets lets you generate as many fresh, never-wrong worksheets as you need at any grade, so you can drill the exact skill without hunting for materials.