My Child Understands Math Tuition but Cannot Do Questions Alone

A child may nod during tuition, copy a correct solution and still freeze at home. Watch what happens with a question that has different numbers or wording: can they name what the question is asking, choose a first step, and continue without reopening the notes?

This is not proof that tuition failed. It can mean the explanation has not yet been retrieved independently, or that the question no longer gives an obvious topic cue.

Use one fresh question from the same skill on the next day, with notes closed for the first attempt. Ask the child to write a first line even if they are unsure. Then compare that line with the method, correct only the first broken step, and try one more fresh question later.

An illustrative example: after a factorisation lesson, a student may factorise the tutor’s expression but choose expansion when a quadratic graph question needs roots. The method-choice practice is to identify the question clue before calculating, not merely to repeat factorisation.

Bring one independent attempt, not only a mark. Ask: ‘At which step did the student need a prompt?’ and ‘What one fresh question should they attempt before the next lesson?’ This keeps tuition and home practice complementary rather than asking either to do the other’s job.

Mentora can be used as an independent practice layer alongside school or tuition; it does not replace a teacher’s judgement or a live teaching relationship.