Over summer break, your child can lose some of the math knowledge they built during the school year. We call this “summer learning loss.”
Math skills are especially vulnerable during long breaks, a learning loss that can make the fall transition harder, especially when the new year builds on skills that have faded.
The last week of school is a great opportunity for a calm conversation and reflection before summer begins to help you understand:
where your child is heading into summer;
what they’re carrying from this year;
Whether there is anything to address before September.
The way parents talk with children about math can shape how children engage with mathematical ideas. Stanford’s DREME network noted that everyday math talk, including number prompts and family conversations, is a way to support children’s mathematical thinking.
The Institute of Education Sciences similarly recommends open-ended questions that help children explain, apply, and discuss math at home.
In our work with students, we see how much confidence and understanding can grow when math feels clear, low-pressure, and connected to how a student thinks. Based on that experience and the research above, here are the principles we recommend keeping in mind:
This conversation works best in an informal setup. A car ride, a walk, or a side-by-side activity can make the conversation feel less pressured.
When a child has something to focus on other than the conversation itself, they open up more willingly and naturally, according to shoulder-to-shoulder research with children.
If your child senses you’re worried, they’ll either hold back or tell you what they think you want to hear.
Remember, you are there to understand their experience, so try to monitor your own emotional response and make sure concern doesn’t take the lead over curiosity.
It is not easy hearing that your child is struggling with math. For some of us, the immediate response is to step in, find solutions, remove discomfort. The best response, however, is patient listening.
Let them finish and ask follow-up questions. Your goal is to understand how they think and feel about math. The more they feel heard, the more they’ll tell you.
Questions with “yes” or “no” answers close conversations down. Opt for reflective questions, which make it easier for your child to keep talking.
We suggest these conversation starters to bring those ideas into an everyday moment.
We’ll go through questions, or topics rather, that can be a valuable blueprint for conversation. It doesn’t — and shouldn’t — be a formal check-in, but a light chat during a stroll, car ride, or over a dinner table.
With these simple questions, you can learn a lot about where your student is in math and how to best support them.
To keep in mind: Younger children in Grades 2 and 3 usually do better with simple, specific questions. Older students in Grades 5-7 can handle more reflective ones.
This question helps you understand what math feels like for your student right now, signaling attitudes like confidence, avoidance, pride, frustration, or hesitation.
For younger children:
“Was there a part of math this year that felt really easy for you?”
“Was there anything that made you want to skip math class?”
For older students, the question can sound like this:
“Did math feel different this year compared to last year? Better, harder, about the same?”
“Was there a moment this year when something in math finally clicked for you?”
A response to each of the questions above gives you useful information, whether they get excited about a topic or become quiet.
Excitement about a topic can show confidence that you can build on.
Silence, a quick subject change, or an immediate “I don’t know” may point to a skill or experience from this year that needs more attention.
Even a flat “it was fine” gives you information. Your child may be disengaged, unsure how to explain what they felt, or simply not ready to reflect yet.
Through personalized learning plans and multisensory teaching techniques, Mathnasium tutors help students excel on their math tests.
This question helps you identify which concepts stuck and which ones may need attention before September.
Research on metacognition and self-regulated learning showed that students learn more effectively when they can recognize what they understand and where they feel stuck. That awareness helps them ask better questions, keep working through difficulty, and get the right support before small gaps become larger ones.
For younger children, you can open this topic with:
“What’s one thing you learned in math this year that you feel pretty good about?”
“Was there anything your teacher kept coming back to that still feels a bit tricky?”
For older students:
“If you had to teach someone one thing you learned in math this year, what would you pick?”
“Is there a topic from this year you’d want to go over again if you had the time?”
This is not a skills test. You’re just listening for specifics. “Math was fine” does not tell you much, but “I understand multiplication, but fractions were confusing” gives you something useful to work with.
When your child can name something specific, they are learning to notice where they stand. They're practicing a skill researchers call metacognition: the ability to think about their own thinking and notice where their understanding is solid and where it has gaps.
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Use this question to understand what your child expects from the next school year and whether any part of math may need extra attention before September.
For younger children:
“Is there anything about math next year you’re looking forward to?”
“If you could get really good at one math thing over the summer, what would it be?”
For older students:
“Do you feel like you’re heading into next year with a solid foundation, or are there things you’d want to shore up?”
“Is there anything from this year you’d want to feel more confident about before September?”
At this point, try to listen for curiosity and readiness, and check whether your child is thinking about next year at all. If they name something specific they want to work on, that’s your opening; if they don’t, let it go and move on.
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Most pre-summer math conversations will land in one of these places, and each one calls for a different response.
Your child ended the year feeling capable in math, and that confidence gives them a helpful starting point for September. Over the summer, the goal is to keep math familiar without making it feel like school.
You do not need a full study schedule. Light, informal math can do the job: a card game, a cooking project, or planning a budget for a day out. These small moments help your student keep using math in a low-pressure way.
This is the easiest outcome to work with. Your child can name a specific topic that felt unclear, such as fractions, long division, or another skill, without feeling discouraged by it. That gives you a useful starting point. It shows they can notice where they need help while still feeling capable in math.
We recommend a few weeks of light, focused practice over the summer, which can help keep that topic from becoming a larger gap. You do not need to change their whole routine. Give that one concept steady attention before September so your child can start the next school year feeling more prepared.
At Mathnasium, we use personalized learning plans to focus on the exact skill or concept a student needs to work on. That way, students can build understanding step by step without feeling overwhelmed.
Your student shows more stress or avoidance than you expected. Take it seriously, but don’t rush to conclusions. One hard unit is not the same as months of struggle. Your student may avoid math or become frustrated about it for two different reasons.
They may not have fully built an earlier skill, or they may need help restoring confidence. Each one needs a different kind of support:
A knowledge gap needs clear instruction on the missing concept.
To rebuild confidence, your child needs repeated, low-pressure chances to experience success.
With a personalized learning plan, our tutors target your child’s knowledge gaps, while a caring and fun group environment helps them feel more confident as their skills develop.
One last note: if your child says “fine” but can’t name anything specific, they aren’t necessarily hiding something. They may just need more time to reflect. Try bringing it up again a few days later, just as casually.
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Choose a casual side-by-side activity to ask your child about their math confidence, learning gaps, and next steps before summer.
Mathnasium is a math-only learning center dedicated to helping year-round K-12 students of all levels excel in math.
Behind each of our programs is a proprietary teaching approach called the Mathnasium Method™. Beyond just rote drills or shortcuts, our method is built to help students truly make sense of what they're learning. We support math mastery through:
Personalized learning: Each student begins with a diagnostic assessment that helps us identify their current skills, knowledge gaps, and how they naturally think through math. We use those insights to build a personalized learning plan tailored to their needs.
Teaching for understanding: We explain math in clear, everyday language, using a mix of verbal, visual, mental, tactile, and written techniques. This allows students to approach each concept in the way that makes the most sense to them.
Caring, responsive tutors: Our tutors are specially trained in both the technical and emotional aspects of teaching. They know when to guide, when to challenge, and how to help students regain trust in their thinking.
Independent problem-solving and critical thinking: We give students space to work through challenges on their own, then rejoin them to check their reasoning. Instead of just giving them the answer, we help them understand the how and why. This helps them develop problem-solving skills and critical thinking tools they can use in math and life.
A supportive, fun environment: Many of our activities are hands-on or game-based. We use reward systems and consistent encouragement to keep students engaged. And we celebrate progress because every win builds competency and enjoyment.
Our results reflect what becomes possible when the approach fits the student:
94% of parents report an improvement in their child’s math skills and understanding
93% of parents report their child’s improved attitude toward math after attending Mathnasium
90% of students saw an improvement in their school grades
For families in and around Surprise, Mathnasium of Surprise is a trusted local center with experience helping students move from avoidance to confidence, session by session.
📅 Schedule a Free Assessment at Mathnasium of Surprise
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Mathnasium of Surprise is a math-only learning center for K-12 students in Surprise, AZ. Trusted by over a million parents, Mathnasium uses personalized learning plans and the proprietary Mathnasium Method™ to help students catch up, keep up, and get ahead on their math journey.
Our specially trained tutors deliver face-to-face instruction in a supportive and fun small-group environment, working with students both in center and online to develop a deep understanding of math, build confidence, and improve academic performance.
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