At this time of year, I always get messages from parents who are worried that their child isn’t completing test papers in time and asking what they can do to help improve their speed. There are, of course, strategies that children can work on over the next 2½ months to help with timing and exam technique. BUT, if I could give one piece of advice to parents of children from P1 right through to P7, it would be to work on your child’s mental maths.
Mental maths is such a core skill and it feeds into almost every area of maths. When basic number facts and calculations become automatic, children don’t have to use as much time or brain power working them out. This means they can focus their attention on understanding the actual question, choosing the right method and solving the problem.
It doesn’t need to mean sitting down with worksheets every evening either. Five or ten minutes of mental maths regularly can make a huge difference. Number bonds, times tables, doubles and halves, quick addition and subtraction, multiplying and dividing by 10 or 100, and finding simple fractions of amounts are all great things to practise.
Speed in a test isn’t just about teaching a child to work faster. Often, it comes from helping them become so confident with the basics that they simply need less time to work things out. And that confidence is something worth building from P1, rather than waiting until P7 when test time becomes an issue.
This is for all children, whether they plan to sit the SEAG exam or not. Being able to work confidently and quickly with numbers is a skill that will support them far beyond tests. It helps with everyday problem-solving, money, time, measurements and making sense of numbers in real-life situations. Building strong mental maths skills now gives children a solid foundation they can carry with them right through school and into everyday life.
Additionally, and I will absolutely die on this hill, add reading into your child’s daily routine. It doesn’t always have to mean sitting down with a book. Read signs at the park, menus, newspapers, leaflets, recipes, labels — anything they come across in everyday life. The more children read, the more confident and fluent they become, and that supports them across every area of learning.
Useful Links
- If you’d like to see an up-to-date list of recommended books for your child’s age, take a look at our Reading Book List by Year Group.
- If you have a child in Primary 4, 5, 6 or 7, have a look at our term-time packs. They’re designed to work alongside what your child is learning in school and can give you a really useful idea of the areas they’re confident in, as well as any topics they may need a little more support with. Click here to view our term-time packs.
- If your child is preparing for the SEAG exam in November 2026, these are the packs I’d recommend at this stage of their preparation. Want to see these packs? Click here
Verified ownerMy daughter really enjoyed completing the work book. It was good to help her do some extra work and it was very focused and easy to complete with the answers. I preferred the print out answers . When granny was helping her she wasn’t good with scanning the recent p6 answers lol we look forward to getting more as they are released and have enjoyed term one of the p6 work book
