When Your Child Gets Stuck With Schoolwork

When schoolwork becomes difficult, more time at the table is not always the most useful next step. Start by finding the specific part your child cannot yet do. Your role is to notice what needs explaining, help them try one manageable task and involve school when needed.

This guide is for parents and carers of school-age children and teenagers facing a particular sticking point. For organising homework across the week, use the separate study-habits guide. Adapt the tasks here to what their teacher has already taught. Grades can show part of their progress, but they do not measure your child's worth or all the things they can do.

Find one sticking point

Look at a recent piece of work together. Ask your child to show you a part they understood and the point where they became stuck. They may not understand the instruction, remember a fact or know how to begin. Those are different problems.

If you cannot explain the method confidently, note the question for the teacher. Avoid teaching a conflicting method simply to finish the page. For a teenager, agree whether they want you to listen, check a specific answer or help them ask for clarification.

Choose one small task, not more of everything

Choose a task that shows the difficulty, such as recalling three words already taught in a science lesson or explaining one maths example. Agree a brief attempt that fits around school instructions, meals and rest. Ten minutes can be a starting suggestion, not a rule or an evidence-based dose.

Have the class example ready to check afterwards. If your child cannot begin, work through that example together first rather than turning the task into a test. Stop and reassess if it repeatedly causes distress or is far beyond what they can manage. Weekly timetables and changes to the study space belong in the study-habits guide, not in this troubleshooting step.

Try remembering, then check

Retrieval practice means trying to bring previously learned information to mind before checking the answer. The Education Endowment Foundation highlights an active attempt to remember, a suitable level of challenge, repetition after a delay and feedback. It is not a substitute for teaching something your child has not understood.

Here is an example for a primary-age child who has already been taught multiplication as equal groups. Close the book and say: Three boxes hold four pencils each. Show how many pencils there are altogether. Let your child draw three groups of four and work out twelve.

Then check their class example together. If they wrote seven, point to the three equal groups and count the pencils in each. Explain the difference between three plus four and three groups of four, using the approach school uses. Ask them to explain it back in their own words.

On another day, try three bags containing four apples each. The changed example lets you see whether the idea makes sense beyond the original wording. If it still does not, make a note for the teacher rather than drilling the answer repeatedly.

Use feedback to see what still needs help

For an older child struggling with a specific topic, choose a few key terms or ideas from their own notes. They can close the page, recall what they remember, then reopen it to correct gaps. Ask for an explanation or an example as well as a definition. Recall is one part of learning, not a complete revision plan.

Keep the exercise separate from punishment and comparisons with other children. Give specific feedback: You checked the mistake and corrected it. At the next attempt, notice what your child can now explain and what still needs help. Change the task, not just the amount of time spent on it.

Ask school for support early

Contact the teacher when the same difficulty keeps returning. Take one example of the work and a short description of what happened. Ask which skill to practise, how to use the school's method and when to review progress.

If you are concerned about additional learning needs, ask about the school's support process. In England, GOV.UK advises contacting the SENCO if you think your child may have special educational needs. Names and arrangements differ elsewhere, so ask your school for its equivalent. A difficult homework session alone is not a diagnosis.

Choose one sticking point, try an appropriate task, check what happened and tell the teacher what remains unclear. You do not have to solve every learning difficulty at home.

Sources and related reading

• EEF: refining retrieval practice
• GOV.UK: SEND and who to contact
• How to Help Your Child Build Study Habits That Actually Work