september 21, 2026

recommend a daily approach to math

Math is a subject that many students find daunting. But it is also a subject that they can master with hard work and practice.

Share these five tips that will help your teen be successful in math:

Keep up to date. Math is a subject that builds on itself. Each day’s lesson depends on something that was learned earlier. Students who fall behind may not have the background to understand new material. Urge your teen to make time every day to work on math, whether there is an assignment due or not.
Read with a pencil in hand. As your teen reads the directions for solving a new kind of problem, suggest trying to solve the sample problems. That way, your teen will know before the next class what questions to ask.
Listen in class. Remind your teen to copy down anything the teacher writes on the board.
Think about problems before solving them. After reading a word problem, your teen can draw a diagram of what it's asking before deciding how to solve the problem. Your teen can also estimate an answer to help verify if the calculations are correct.
Check carefully. After solving a problem, your teen should review it to see if the answer makes sense.

share helpful note-taking tips

What's one skill that will really help your teen in class and also when reading and studying? Taking notes. Most teachers expect students to write down and remember what goes on in class. Yet many middle and high school students just rely on handouts and aren't sure how to take useful notes.

Offer your teen these note-taking tips:

Be prepared. Your teen can’t take notes without supplies to write with. Your teen should check before each class and make sure to have plenty of pens, pencils and paper.
Start a new page every day. Your teen should begin taking notes at the top of a fresh piece of paper for every class, and write the date at the top.
Leave plenty of room. Your student may want to clarify or add a few ideas to the notes later, so it's a good idea to some leave blank space on the page.
Use visuals. A picture really is worth a thousand words. Drawing a chart or a diagram can help make an idea clearer in your teen's mind.
Use colors and shapes. Have your teen try drawing a circle or box around the most important idea. Or, try using colored markers to show how ideas relate.

put an end to procrastination

Does this sound familiar? It’s 9:30 p.m. and the paper is due tomorrow. Your teen is just starting to write. Panic sets in.

Many students put things off. It can drive their families crazy—and it can hurt the teens’ grades. How can you help your student kick this bad habit? Encourage your teen to:

Get organized. Teens who put things off often have problems getting organized. Help your teen organize a study area so that everything has a designated place. Provide folders your teen can use to file material for each subject. Have your teen set up a “homework box” for supplies.
Do a mood check. Studies show that when teens are in a bad mood, they are more likely to put things off. Ask what’s keeping your teen from getting started. You might hear, “I’m not in the mood to write a paper.” Remind your teen that “If you wait until you’re in the mood, the paper may not get written.”
Use positive self-talk. Saying things like, “There’s no time like the present,” and “I can do this,” actually works.

show your teen how to organize class materials

Keeping binders organized can help students do better in their classes and make the most of their study time. The same is true for digital files, now that more students are working online.

Share these tips with your teen for keeping track of class materials:

Put the class syllabus in front. Most teachers give out a sheet that tells students what they’ll be learning throughout the year. This should go in the front of your teen's binder. If your teen has a digital folder of materials for the class, the syllabus should be filed in it.
Use dividers. Some teens start a new notebook section with every unit. Others begin with each new marking period. Keeping papers in smaller sections (or digital folders) makes it easier to find the one they need.
Keep all class handouts. After receiving new materials, your teen can put them right into the notebook (or the appropriate folder).
Have a pocket folder (or subfolder) for assignments. Each subject notebook should have a place where your teen puts that day’s homework for easy access.
Have a section (or subfolder) for returned quizzes and tests. The best way to predict what may be on a test is by looking at the kinds of questions the teacher has asked in the past.

charts help make sense of history

Even when students understand all the words in the history texts they are reading, some still aren't sure how to identify what’s most important.

A simple cause and effect chart can help your teen recognize main ideas and pick out important details. Suggest that your teen answer the following questions while reading, and write the questions and answers on a chart:

What is the problem?
What or who caused the problem?
What solutions were tried to solve the problem? What was the result?
Which solution worked best?
What happened?

When finished, your teen will clearly see the main ideas of the information in the reading. And the chart will also be helpful when it’s time to study for a test.

finding the pattern makes solving math rpoblems easier

All the math problems teachers assign have solutions. But not knowing the steps to reach them may leave your teen staring at the page in frustration.

Here’s a strategy that may help when your teen gets stuck on a math problem this year: Look for the pattern.

Often a teacher will assign 10 or 20 math problems at a time. But many may be, more or less, different versions of the same problem. Finding a step that happens in each of the problems your teen can do may provide a key to figuring out all the rest.

As your teen solves problems, suggest talking the process through out loud. (“Now I’m multiplying both sides of this equation by 2.”) This helps students find both the answer to the problem at hand, and a procedure to try on similar problems.

What works to motivate teens?

Not all techniques families use to motivate their teens have the desired effect. Some have just the opposite! Keep these do’s and don’ts in mind as you go through the school year:

Do work with your teen to find solutions. Students are more motivated to follow through on a plan they helped create.
Do make yourself available to talk over your teen’s problems, without taking responsibility for solving them.
Do link your teen’s goals to the task at hand. Getting practice writing papers now will make writing them in college easier.
Don't nag. It doesn’t work, and it will annoy your teen.
Don't protect your teen from learning. Students must learn to face the consequences of their actions—or inactions.
Don't lose your cool. It won’t motivate your teen. It will just create distance between the two of you.

Brought to you by:

Gwinnett County Public Schools

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