Rebuilding Math Confidence: Practical Tips for Families

What if rebuilding your child's math confidence this summer started not with worksheets, but with a mirror?

In Part 2 of my S5E42 Schoolutions conversation, Wendy Ward Hoffer (All Minds on Mathematics: Math Workshop for Every Learner) gets practical and personal. If your child had a hard year in math, this is your playbook. Wendy walks families and educators through exactly what to do and what to stop saying so that children walk into September with agency, curiosity, and the belief that they belong in mathematics.

In this episode you'll learn:
• Why rebuilding a child's math identity often starts with the adults first
• How to let your child be the expert when homework looks unfamiliar
• What "humble math" looks like — and why it's the most powerful teaching stance there is
• The one thing to say instead of "I didn't learn it this way."
• What a child who has had a great summer mathematically looks like when walking into a September classroom

Wendy's vision for classroom belonging, pro-kid mindset, and whole-child education shines throughout, and her Wonder Woman analogy for what student confidence looks like might be the most memorable moment in the series.

💫Check out Part 1 & the linked resources for Part 2 here:
📚 Book: All Minds on Mathematics: Math Workshop for Every Learner
🌐 Organization: Public Education Business Coalition (PEBC)
💫Blog Post: "Math: Why Doesn't Yours Look Like Mine?"
💫Upcoming Professional Development: Minds on Math Institute
💫Study Guide for All Minds on Math

Chapters:
0:00 Welcome back & what Part 2 covers
1:30 If your child had a hard year in math — start here
2:00 Look in the mirror first: modeling a healthy math identity
2:45 Re-engaging a struggling learner without using the word "math"
3:30 Creating safety at home for risk-taking and vulnerability
4:30 Teaching kids it's okay to disagree with themselves
5:30 The dinner table as a math and thinking workshop
6:45 What September looks like for a teacher who has read All Minds on Mathematics
8:00 How Wendy envisions readers engaging with the book
9:20 "I didn't learn it this way" — what to say instead
10:00 Let your child be the expert: questions that work
11:30 When you still don't understand after asking all the right questions
12:20 How modern math curricula differ from what we were taught
13:40 The egg carton fraction story — and "Mama, I hate your math"
15:30 It's not about the curriculum — it's about the child
16:10 What a child looks like after a great math summer (the Wonder Woman moment)
17:40 Reading from All Minds on Mathematics: humble math, pages 38–39
18:45 Olivia's 3 key takeaways
21:00 Next week on Schoolutions + closing

Schoolutions⁩ is the podcast for educators and school leaders, families and homeschoolers, and the coaches, counselors, and mentors who believe every student deserves to thrive. Join our community of educators committed to cultivating student success, inspired teaching, and creating inclusive classrooms with a pro-kid mindset focused on the whole child.

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🎵 Music: Benjamin Wahl

Don't forget to 🔔SUBSCRIBE for more teaching tips, and 💬SHARE the episode!

Next Week: Cornelius⁩ and Dr. Kass Minor, co-founders of The Minor Collective, have spent years building education around a radical premise: that kids deserve to be truly centered. In a moment when teaching feels surveilled, exhausted, and politically complicated, this conversation is a fierce, tender reminder of why the work still matters and how to keep going.

#MathIdentity #HumbleMath #StudentSuccess #FamilyPartnerships #InclusiveTeaching #ProKidMindset #WholeChild #SummerLearning #ClassroomBelonging #InstructionalCoaching #EquityInEducation #EmpoweredEducators #MathWorkshop #ParentInvolvement #AllMindsOnMath #Schoolutions #InspiringStudents #TeacherSupport #EducationTransformation #studentengagement  #schoolutions #schoolutionspodcast #forevergettingbetter #curiositydriven #evidencebasedstrategies #classroomreadystrategies

When coaches, teachers, administrators, and families work hand in hand, it fosters a school atmosphere where everyone is inspired and every student is fully engaged in their learning journey.

Transcript

Olivia: [00:00:00] Welcome listeners. I am back to continue my conversation with Wendy Ward Hoffer. If you caught part one, welcome back. If this is your first time joining us, no worries. This episode stands on its own, though part one is absolutely worth your time. Today, Wendy Ward Hoffer and I get practical and personal.

We talk about what families can actually do when a child has had a terrible year in math, why the dinner table might be your most underrated teaching tool, and how to ask the right questions so your child becomes the expert in the room. This is Schoolutions, the podcast that extends education beyond the classroom. A show that isn't just theory, but practical, try-it-tomorrow approaches for educators and caregivers to ensure every student finds their spark and receives the support they need to thrive. 

I am Olivia Wahl, and I'm so [00:01:00] happy to be back for part two of my conversation with Wendy Ward Hoffer. Um, Wendy, our conversation is focusing primarily on your newly released book. I have it right here. All Minds on Mathematics: Math Workshop for Every Learner. Yet, you also agreed to set teachers and families up for success by creating an episode. It's going to come out in June, and it's going to set them up for summer success with their children. So, um, I'm excited to jump into part two. We're going to create, like, a playbook for families and for teachers. So let's start out with families. I am a parent, and I have a child that had a horrible year. Not really, but- 

Wendy: I'm so sorry…

Olivia:... if I am No. If I am a, a parent and I have a child who just had a horrible year as a mathematician, you know, where do I start picking up the pieces for my kid?

Wendy: Yeah, that's such an important [00:02:00] question. I mean, not to get too personal, but one thing I might suggest is first just take a quick look in the mirror because we teach who we are, right? So more than what we say or, our kids are watching us. So if we ourselves aren't modeling a productive math identity, that might be a really important starting place to just reframe how we conceive of mathematics and math learning and its value and strive to, you know, really emphasize that as a positive opportunity.

Then when it comes to the child, I think it's about re-engaging the student with a healthy perspective on math. Um, there's all kinds of engagement. There's emotional engagement, there's cognitive engagement, there's social engagement. But finding a window, what's something that's gonna hook this, this young learner to be interested in math? Maybe it's a baking project, maybe it's some [00:03:00] sports statistics, maybe it's a, a trip to the grocery store or saving for an item that they, that they really want. But not even using the word math, but just get some numbers into their life in a positive association and see what you can build from there. Um, yeah, those might be my suggestions.

Olivia: Those are great suggestions. Um, I also know if I am going to take a risk, try something new that's out of my comfort zone, I don't need to feel 100% safe because there's no safety when you're trying something and you don't know what is going to happen. But I think it's really important that our kids do feel safe to take risks and to be vulnerable. So what can we do as families to set that safety up within our homes? 

Wendy: Mm. Yeah. Great question. I mean, I think, again, back to our modeling, I think it's important as adults that we're humble and reflective about our own errors and that we [00:04:00] confess to our children our mistakes. Like, "Oh my gosh, today I forgot my lunch," or whatever it was, because that gives them the message that it's okay to be human. It's okay to, to mess up or something. Um, and that invites them to be equally honest with us about their errors. Um, there was another part of your question, though. What did I not get to? 

Olivia: No, I think the idea of, yeah, acknowledging mistakes, but also taking risks and being vulnerable- 

Wendy: Yes ... 

Olivia: That's something else.

Wendy: Right. Right. I'm sorry, I got excited about the mistakes. No. Um, yeah, I think that idea of honoring thinking, whatever it is, it doesn't have to be right the first time, but just being curious about the process, um, and letting kids know it's okay to disagree with ourselves, right? One of my, um, wonderful teacher friends teaches her, her second graders to say, "Oh, I disagree with myself," right?

"I used to think that three plus two was four, but now I [00:05:00] realize it's five, and it doesn't mean I'm dumb or a bad person. It's just I grew my thinking, and that's, that's okay." And creating that culture where we're all just humbly growing our thinking, sharing our thinking, bouncing our ideas off one another, and reflecting on those ideas. Um, I think those are places of safety where children can learn that it's, it's appropriate to, um, to experiment, and they don't have to have everything right the first time. 

Olivia: I, I'm finding my older son is home from college for the summer, and I'm finding that dinner conversations are very rich. They're very ripe opportunities for discourse where we rarely all agree around a topic, and yet it's, it's such a beautiful place to practice disagreeing respectfully with people. Um, and we talk about evidence to support our, our claims and [00:06:00] how we feel and where our news sources are. And I will tell you, Wendy, I learn more from my two boys, um, and their knowledge base. Thank goodness they have teachers that are filling and fueling them with all different perspectives and all different resources because it's benefiting our family. I think that since families are often around each other a little bit more during summertime, it's a gorgeous opportunity to have conversations around mathematical thinking, but just thinking in general. 

Wendy: Absolutely. I learn so much from my own young adult children, and I'm equally grateful to have some time with them this summer.

Olivia: Yeah. Yeah. Let's flip the switch a little bit and talk about teachers then. For a teacher who has truly just embodied what you hope and dream by reading All Minds on Mathematics, what would it look like in their classroom in September? 

Wendy: Hmm. Great question. [00:07:00] And I know these teachers, by the way. These photos in the book, these are my friends. These are teachers I've worked with for decades who are doing this work and have taught me so much about this work. And what I know is that in September, they're very gentle with themselves, realizing that students may not be coming in from a culture of thinking or a place of safety, and that that's something they need to build, is a community where students can share their ideas and be respected and, as you described, respectfully disagree with one another. Um, and where everyone is in, right? There's no hiding place. You can't sort of silently wait it out and, and let someone else tell you the answer or the approach, but that everyone needs to participate in that important exercise of thinking. 

Olivia: Yeah. I love to ask authors what their vision is for how we read their books, because I know I [00:08:00] love every word that I am working on, um, as a writer, and so thinking of just looking at certain parts, it just doesn't do a book justice. What would you envision for us reading All Minds on Mathematics over the summer if I'm a parent, if I'm a teacher? 

Wendy: Uh, I would envision a straw hat and a tall glass of lemonade and, uh, some sunscreen. But also, uh, as you read, I really invite folks to slow down. Uh, I put a lot of reflection questions throughout the book and at the end of each chapter. And the-- what we know about learning is we really need to rumble with ideas for them to stick. So I would just invite a reader to maybe keep a journal and, and spend some time thinking about each of those questions and/or find a colleague with whom they might discuss those topics as they read through, and really think about the so [00:09:00] what for their own practice and their, their own classroom starting in the fall.

Olivia: Yeah. Well said, well said. Uh, I want to talk about the idea of bridging the gap that can sometimes happen between families and school. And I will say, I have said these words, um, to my own children, "I did not learn math this way. I am not a math person. I don't know how to do this." Those words have fallen from my mouth embarrassingly. What could families say differently that would not put a negative spin on math in general? 

Wendy: Mm-hmm. Yeah. This is so common, and we've all done it. And in fact, the story goes way back when my dad was 11. Apparently, he came home from school with his math, and his dad said to him, and this was like back in the '40s, "Up, you're on your own there." Because again- ... he, he hadn't learned it in that way. 

Olivia: Right. 

Wendy: Um, so this is a common challenge. I think, though, when [00:10:00] we say those things, uh, "I don't get it," or, "I didn't learn it that way," um, it kinda separates us from the child and separates us from the experience as a resource to them. And so instead, um, I think we can just get curious, like, "Wow, tell me more. What, what does this mean? How does this, how does this work? Can you show me in another way?" Um, let the child be the expert and let them explain their thinking and what they're learning in the classroom. And ideally, through that process, we as adults should make sense of it. It should make sense. And if it's not making sense yet, we can ask more questions: "Can you build it for me? Can you draw it for me? Can you show me what that means or how that, how that fits together for you?" Because the goal is that it should be reasonable, right? It should be meaningful and logical. It shouldn't be just a total abstraction. 

Olivia: One of my favorite things about you as a writer, you also craft blog posts as well that [00:11:00] are up on PEBC, and so I believe you have a blog post that spoke directly to this.

Wendy: Yes. It's called, I think it's called something like, Why Doesn't Yours Look Like Mine? 

Olivia: So, so perfect. So I will make a link to tuck, or I will make sure to tuck a link wi- for that blog in the show notes as well. Um, I'm also thinking of if I am a caregiver who the child is explaining the math, I'm asking all the perfect questions that you just offered, and yet I still have no idea what they're talking about. What is the best way for me to support my child, um, as a mathematician then? 

Wendy: Yeah, great question. That it might be time to do a little more research in that case. Um, you might be able to find the resource of the curriculum that your school is using online or perhaps to ask the teacher for some guidance. Um, maybe they can share a few pages from the teacher guide or something of that nature so that you can deepen your [00:12:00] understanding of the intention of that approach. But, um, yeah, that would be amazing if all of our parents dove in, uh, to learning the current approaches to math teaching so that the teachers could have that level of support from home.

Olivia: Just, uh, uh, thinking of that, the approach and the shift, what-- how would you explain that difference to someone that maybe has older, older children and doesn't understand necessarily how the difference or where the difference is grounded? 

Wendy: Hmm, this is a big question, Livi. This is a big question. I think the, the current goal of math curricula has a lot to do with con- contextualizing math and also building conceptual understanding. Um, I don't know about you, but when I was in school, I learned a lot of things like copy, dot, flop, and, uh, that's how we divided fractions, and we didn't know why [00:13:00] it worked or how it worked. We just knew that was the algorithm. Uh, but these days, uh, curricula are slowing down to present a variety of models and really support the students', uh, understanding of the ideas. In some cases, they're really helpful models, and they really work for the kiddos, and in other cases, sometimes the models can get a little overwhelming. And so, uh, I know parents have a tendency to sometimes wanna help our kids, right? We don't want them to suffer, so we're like, "Just copy, dot, flop." Um, but that's kinda undermining of the goal of what may be happening there. Um, can I tell you the story of egg carton fractions real quick? 

Olivia: Please. 

Wendy: Um, so confession from my household. Um, you know, as our kids grow up and they're learning and their methods are brought together by the school, sometimes as y- as we're noting, those methods ver- differ from our own. And one of my children came home with some [00:14:00] fraction work one, one evening and was, uh, plowing through it with, uh, a method that they didn't quite understand, and I got really excited about explaining this much more clearly, and my favorite resource for teaching fractions is the egg carton, right?

'Cause we can put little tokens in the egg slots, and we can make thirds, and we can make fourths, and we can make sixths, and we can show so much with fractions, um, using the egg carton. So I went, and I got my egg cartons, and I got my beads, and I got my yarn. I was getting all set up at the kitchen counter, and my darling child said to me "Mama, I hate your math." It's all about understanding. And that's not how we do it. 

Olivia: That says volumes. That says volumes. Oh, gosh. 

Wendy: We got through it, but, um, yeah, there's, you know, there's a lot of conflicting voices and messages about how math should be taught and, um, you know, people [00:15:00] ask me which curriculum and et cetera, and I don't think it's about the curriculum. I think it's about supporting the kids and, and really building their confidence and helping them understand. 

Olivia: It, it's understanding the why. It-- So many of us have just gone through education of having to have an answer or memorize facts, and rarely are we asked, sadly, uh, this is where I think education is going. We are asking children to understand why behind all different perspectives, to be compassionate and empathetic. Um, and I do have a lot more hope, Wendy, with the youth of today than many of the grownups. Um, I hang out with grownups that see that children have tremendous power, um, with voices, and so that gives me hope. Um, I also would love to leave listeners with part two with a call to action, but before we do, what would it [00:16:00] look like for a child that's had a tremendous summer mathematically, um, to walk into a classroom in September, um, after really having lots of exposure to different math experiences? 

Wendy: Hmm. Okay, so there's this scene from the first "Wonder Woman" movie that came out a few years ago where they're, like, in the trenches, and she's saying, "We need to help these people. We need to go out there." And, um, Steve is like, "No, no, that's no man's land. Too dangerous. Don't go." And Wonder Woman, like, whips off her hood and, like, drops her cloak and, like, climbs up the stairs and charges onto the battlefield, and she's, like, deflecting bullets, and she's just got all this agency and power and confidence. And I'm not suggesting we send our children running towards, um, military zones, but just that poise of, like, "I got this. I don't care what you all say or think. Like, this is [00:17:00] what I'm gonna do, and I'm gonna persevere." That's, that's what I would love to see from our students. 

Olivia: I like the vibe, and I like the energy. Um, so with that said, there's something that - I've read the book a couple of times now, and I've been carrying it with me, and I was sharing it with a colleague who is a number one fan of yours. And we both just paused where you were talking about humility and humble math, and I asked you if I could read this small section because it just, it got right to my heart, and I've reread it numerous times. So you gave me permission, and this is where I want to end the conversation. Um, it is pages 38 and 39. If I can fall in love with two pages of the book, these are my, a couple of my favorites, and this is what you say: "In a teaching context, humility is a willingness to stoop down to lift students up. We humbly crouch to understand another's [00:18:00] perspective, set aside our own ideas as we listen to and consider the thinking of others, relinquish the need for perfection or completion in favor of the ongoing evolution of understanding."

Wendy, so beautifully said. And the idea of getting at each other's eye level to listen and to really be in the moment - present with each other, that's what I'm hoping teachers, caregivers, students, anyone that listens to this conversation sees; that we have to be humble in order to continue growing. So thank you so much for taking the time to talk today, Wendy.

Wendy: Thank you. It's been my pleasure. 

Olivia: Yeah. Take care. 

Wendy: You too.

Olivia: These two conversations with Wendy Ward Hoffer genuinely changed how I think about math, summer, and what children need from the adults around them. Here are three of my key takeaways from the continued conversation [00:19:00] with Wendy. First, before you try to fix your child's math struggle, take a look in the mirror. 

The math identity we model as adults, the offhand, "I'm not a math person," or, "I didn't learn it this way," it lands harder than we think. Rebuilding a child's relationship with mathematics often starts with quietly rebuilding our own. Second, let your child be the expert. When the homework looks foreign and the methods don't match anything you remember, resist the urge to override it. Ask questions instead. "Tell me more. Can you show me another way? What does this part mean to you?" That curiosity doesn't just keep you from accidentally undermining the classroom, it also positions your child as capable and knowledgeable, which is exactly where you want them. 

Third, humble math is powerful math. In Wendy's words, "Humility in a teaching context is a willingness to stoop down to [00:20:00] lift students up." That really applies to every adult in a child's life, setting aside our own need for perfection or completion so a child's thinking has room to grow. That posture, more than any curriculum or program, is what builds lasting mathematical confidence.

Make sure to check out all the resource links in the show notes to connect with Wendy and also to access her writing. And next week on Schoolutions, join me with Cornelius and Dr. Kass Minor. They are the co-founders of The Minor Collective, who have spent years building education around a radical premise: that kids deserve to be truly centered. In a time when teaching feels surveilled, exhausted, and politically complicated, this conversation is a fierce, tender reminder of why the work still matters and how to keep going. 

Schoolutions Podcast is created, produced, and edited by me, Olivia Wahl. Thank you to my [00:21:00] older son, Benjamin, who created the music playing in the background. You can follow and listen to Schoolutions wherever you get your podcasts or subscribe to never miss an episode and watch on YouTube. Thank you to my guest, Wendy Ward Hoffer, for reminding us that summer isn't a break from math. It's the best math classroom your child will ever step inside; the kitchen, the car, the cash register, the dinner table, every one of them is an invitation to raise a thinker, a problem-solver, and a kid who walks into September believing they belong in mathematics. 

And if you work with children, are you ready to grow? Book a coaching session with me, and let's unlock the expert who is already within you. You'll be joining a community of educators who are forever getting better through collective expertise. Make sure to tune in every Monday and Friday for part one and part two of my guest conversations with the best evidence-based, classroom-ready strategies that you can apply right away to better the lives of the children in your [00:22:00] care. Your 60-second bite-sized piece of learning from our conversation will be waiting for you on Wednesdays to share. Take care, and thank you for forever getting better with me. See you next week.