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A lot of parents feel shut out of maths revision. The content has moved past what they remember, and offers of help get a shrug. Most of what makes revision work, though, doesn't need you to do any maths.
1. What good maths revision looks like
The study techniques with the strongest evidence behind them are testing yourself and spreading practice out over time. A large review by Dunlosky and colleagues (2013) rated both as highly useful, and rated rereading and highlighting as low utility.
In maths, that means revision should mostly be answering questions. If you walk past and see an hour of reading through notes, suggest your child tries a question on the same page instead.
2. Your part: the plan
A revision plan works best when it's built around the topics your child can't do yet, with the hard ones spread over several sessions. Your child can make the plan; your part is to ask to see it, help them count the evenings they really have around clubs and family plans, and put it somewhere you'll both see it.
3. Your part: the questions
You can quiz your child without knowing the answers. Choose a question from a revision guide or past paper with answers at the back, let your child do it, and ask them to talk you through the working. "How did you get that?" works whether or not you can follow every step, and explaining a method out loud is good revision in itself.
4. Your part: the conditions
A quiet table, a phone in another room, food and regular sleep do more for revision than most parents realise. Protecting those, especially in the weeks before mocks and exams, is a real contribution.
5. How much is reasonable
There's no official figure. These amounts are a starting point most students can keep up without burning out.
| Stage | Maths revision on most weekdays |
|---|---|
| Year 6, weeks before SATs | 15 to 20 minutes |
| Years 7 to 9, before end-of-year tests | 20 to 30 minutes |
| Year 11, before mocks or iGCSEs | One or two sessions of 30 to 45 minutes, more at weekends close to the exams |
6. What to stop asking
"How much revision have you done today?" invites a number and an argument. "What did you get stuck on today?" invites an answer you can do something with. Comparisons with siblings or friends rarely help either, however they're meant.
7. See which topics are moving
The hardest part for a parent is knowing whether revision is reaching the right topics. The Ivy Maths Parent Dashboard shows your child's working level, their gaps and their progress, so you can see which topics are moving without having to check the maths yourself. Take the Full Assessment with your child this week, then look at the Parent Dashboard each Sunday to see which gap topics have moved and which need more time in the plan.