A school report may show that your child’s maths grade is below target without making the next step clear. Recent marked work can give you more to review: which questions were difficult, what your child wrote and what the teacher marked. A GCSE maths tutor can look at the same evidence while watching how your child approaches a question.
Before the next report
- The grade tells you the result. Recent marked work can give you more to review when deciding what to work on.
- Ask your child to talk you through one or two marked questions aloud, and listen rather than teach.
- A GCSE maths tutor can revisit earlier topics with your child and watch how they approach each question.
- A paid trial first lesson gives your child and the tutor an opportunity to work together before you decide whether to continue.
Your child seems to understand the maths, but the grade says otherwise
A below-target grade does not identify the reason by itself. The next question is whether the marked work points to the method, the written working, an earlier topic or something else. One possible issue is the difference between the method a student understands and the working they put on the page.
In one GCSE maths lesson, the tutor paused because he could not follow the student’s written working and asked the student to explain each line aloud. The student explained the method correctly, so the tutor focused on how the working was laid out. In an earlier lesson with the same student, the tutor said the working needed to be set out more clearly so that it could be followed.
Written working makes the method visible to the marker. Depending on the mark scheme, it may allow method marks to be awarded when the final answer is wrong. If important steps are missing from the page, the written answer may not show the full method the student intended.
Your child is struggling with maths they covered earlier
Later GCSE maths questions can depend on skills covered earlier in the course. Algebra, fractions and rearranging may appear within longer questions after the class has moved to another topic. Earlier marked work can be useful alongside the current topic when reviewing a below-target report.
A tutor may revisit topics your child has already covered when recent work suggests that more practice is needed. In one lesson, the tutor began with rearranging, fractions, factorising, expanding and minus signs from the first half of the paper. These are examples of earlier skills a tutor may review, not a fixed checklist for every student.
Is your child struggling with maths they covered earlier?
A GCSE maths tutor from Greenhill Academics can revisit earlier topics with your child and watch how they approach each question on an interactive whiteboard.
Ask what a first lesson coversYour child does not know which part of maths needs attention first
A bad report can leave more than one possible starting point: algebra, earlier topics, written working and the format of exam questions. Marked work and school feedback can help narrow the choice, but neither one question nor one grade can determine the priority on its own.
Tutors can use the work in front of them to decide where to begin. In one lesson, a tutor selected algebra for homework after reviewing the student’s work. A tutor may also introduce a question format that is unfamiliar to the student. In one international-course lesson, the student was shown a completed answer and asked to identify the error. These are possible starting points, not a fixed order for every student.
You want to help at home without turning it into another maths lesson
You do not need to teach the topic yourself to gather a useful clue. You can listen while your child explains how they approached a recent marked question.
The talk-through check
- Use a recent marked maths paper or test. If none is available, ask the school whether a recent one can be shared.
- Choose one or two questions where marks were lost.
- Ask your child to explain what they were trying to do, line by line, without changing the answer. Listen rather than teach.
- Compare the explanation with the written working and any teacher comments or mark scheme provided.
If your child can explain steps that are absent from the page, the written answer may not show the full method they intended. If they are unsure how to begin or why they selected a method, that topic or question style may need revisiting. One or two questions are clues only. Review them alongside marked work and school feedback, because they cannot establish the cause of the report, diagnose the course or determine the grade.
Use a recent marked maths paper
If the last marked test did not come home, ask the school whether one can be shared. What you hear in the talk-through is one useful detail to mention in an enquiry, alongside the marked work and school feedback.
Would you like your child to try a GCSE maths lesson before you commit?
Greenhill Academics offers a paid trial first lesson, used as an assessment. It gives your child and the tutor a first opportunity to work together before you decide whether to continue.
Ask about a trial lessonHow can a GCSE maths tutor in Abu Dhabi help before the next report?
A tutor can review the marked work with your child. In lessons, a GCSE maths tutor can watch your child’s working line by line, revisit earlier topics that may need more work and use the marked work as one source when deciding what deserves attention first.
Schools in Abu Dhabi can follow UK GCSE or international routes, and the papers differ. Tell us the course and exam board your child follows so that information can be considered when matching. In lessons, the tutor can use questions from the course your child is studying.
Lessons take place online on an interactive whiteboard. Evening or weekend times may be available, subject to the tutor match. Progress updates are provided through regular assessments and feedback.
A lesson on the whiteboard
A Greenhill Academics maths lesson recorded live on the shared whiteboard. GCSE maths lessons run in the same online format.
Meet Ejaz and Maisie, who both teach GCSE maths
Two GCSE maths specialists
Ejaz · Mathematics, Imperial College London
Ejaz is a third-year MSci Mathematics student at Imperial College London. He achieved 44 out of 45 in the IB and eight grade 9s at IGCSE, and he specialises in GCSE and A Level Mathematics and Physics.
Maisie · Mathematics and Sciences, Oxford
Maisie is in the final year of an MSci in Molecular Biochemistry at Oxford. She achieved A*A*A*A* at A Level in Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics and Further Mathematics. She has tutored pupils aged 11 to 16 across KS3 and GCSE Mathematics and English.
What should you know about GCSE maths tutoring in Abu Dhabi?
My child’s report says they are below target in maths. Where do we start?
Try the talk-through on one or two questions from a recent marked paper, and listen to how your child explains them. Treat what you hear as one clue alongside the marked work and the school’s feedback. You can mention that clue in an enquiry together with anything specific you would like help with.
Does it matter which GCSE course my child follows in Abu Dhabi?
It can, because schools in Abu Dhabi can follow UK GCSE or international routes and the papers differ. Tell us the course and exam board your child follows so that information can be considered when matching. In lessons, the tutor can use questions from the course your child is studying.
What happens in the first lesson?
The first lesson is a paid trial, used as an assessment. Your child and the tutor work together on the interactive whiteboard before you decide whether to continue.
Will the lesson times work from Abu Dhabi?
They can, subject to tutor availability. Lessons are online, and evening or weekend times may be available. Available times are confirmed during the enquiry.
How do you match my child with a GCSE maths tutor?
We select a tutor from our team who is the best match for your child. Tell us the course and exam board your child follows so that information can be considered when matching, and tell us anything specific you would like help with.
Tell us what support your child needs after the report
Send an enquiry about your child’s year group and the support they need. That information can be considered when matching, and lessons take place online.
Send your enquiry