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Practice Builds STEM Skills. Here Is How to Make It the Right Kind of Hard.

Your child says they are not a math person. Here is how STEM skills grow: practice at the right size of hard, proof your child collects, and calm math talk at home. Plus what brain science does and does not tell us.

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Learning Success infographic, Revolutionizing STEM Education. Two cards: STEM skills support future careers in science, technology, engineering and math; STEM capability is universal, and every child can develop STEM skills with the right approach, not only a certain type of student. A section on the science of growth explains neuroplasticity as the brain reorganizing and learning new skills throughout life, over a blue brain illustration, with a red callout on targeted practice. Empowering parents: you are your child's first and most important teacher; give your child the right tools and recognize their potential for growth. Learning Success logo in the footer.
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Learning Success infographic, Revolutionizing STEM Education. Two cards: STEM skills support future careers in science, technology, engineering and math; STEM capability is universal, and every child can develop STEM skills with the right approach, not only a certain type of student. A section on the science of growth explains neuroplasticity as the brain reorganizing and learning new skills throughout life, over a blue brain illustration, with a red callout on targeted practice. Empowering parents: you are your child's first and most important teacher; give your child the right tools and recognize their potential for growth. Learning Success logo in the footer.

Your child pushes the math worksheet away. “I’m not a math person,” they say. Science homework brings the same sigh. You start to wonder if they are right. Maybe some kids are built for this, and yours is not. That worry is heavy. Many parents sit at this same table with the same fear.

Common questions from parents

Is my child simply not a math person?
To us, “not a math person” is a conclusion, not a fact. Your child built it from hard moments. Skills in math and science grow with teaching and practice. New evidence your child collects is what changes the belief.
Does practice change my child’s brain?
The brain keeps changing as it learns. “Building pathways” is a good picture of that. The brain-scan studies we rely on are about reading. So we make no scan claims about math. What we see is that practice builds the skill.
How hard should math and science practice be?
Aim for work your child manages with effort and a strategy, not without. Work below that teaches nothing new. Work far above it feeds the fear. Keep sessions short and say when they will end.
What if math stays hard for my child?
Keep teaching it, step by step, and watch what you see at home. Our free dyscalculia screener asks about what you notice. It is a starting point, not a diagnosis. Only a professional evaluation can get an IEP or 504 plan. See a professional too if you suspect a vision, hearing or medical cause.
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To us, "not a math person" is a conclusion, not a fact. STEM skills grow with practice that is hard but doable with effort and a strategy.

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What does this STEM infographic say?

The infographic asks one question. Is STEM only for a certain kind of kid? STEM means science, technology, engineering and math. Here are its main points in plain words.

  • STEM skills matter. Many jobs use science, tech and math every day.
  • There is no STEM type. Any child can build these skills with good teaching. That is our position too.
  • The brain keeps learning. It changes as it learns new skills, all through life.
  • Practice builds the skill. Steady, focused practice is how STEM skills grow.
  • Parents matter. You are your child’s first teacher. The right tools help.

Two lines on the image go further than we would. One says effort changes the brain’s structure. Another says growth is always possible and potential has no limit. The research we rely on does not show that for math or science. What we say is plainer. Skills grow with teaching and practice.

“‘I’m bad at math’ is a conclusion your child drew. New evidence outvotes it. Arguments do not.” Laura Lurns

Laura Lurns · Learning Success expert

Why does my child believe they are “not a math person”?

“I’m bad at math” sounds like a fact to your child. To us, it is a conclusion. Your child built it from real moments. The wrong answers. The red marks. The friend who finished first. Arguing with it rarely works. Your child has evidence, and your words do not outweigh it.

So the belief has to be outvoted, not argued away. That takes new evidence your child collects. Here is the order it tends to go in.

  • Now: cut the daily failures. Aim for fewer, shorter, better-pitched math moments. Not easier ones.
  • As skills build: let your child notice a new skill. Their own notice counts most.
  • Later: expect the words to linger. “I’m bad at math” often outlasts the belief.

Worry about math is part of this too. Give it its own care, alongside the teaching. The same belief shows up in science class. Our look at the “science brain” myth covers that side.

Key takeaways

  1. No STEM type: Skills in math and science grow with teaching and practice.
  2. Pitch it right: Good practice is doable with effort and a strategy, not without.
  3. Proof beats praise: Old work beside new work shows your child how far they came.

What kind of practice helps STEM skills grow?

Practice works best at the right size of hard. Your child should manage it with effort and a strategy. Without those, they could not do it yet. Work below that line teaches nothing new. Work far above it confirms the fear.

  • Keep sessions short. Tell your child when it will end. A known end is easier to start.
  • Say what is coming. Unknown math is the scariest kind.
  • Keep practice and testing apart. Not every math moment needs a grade.
  • Save old work. Put it beside today’s work. Your child sees proof of growth.
  • Watch your own math talk. To us, “I was hopeless at this too” sounds kind. It also hands your child a reason to quit.

Two studies looked at parents’ math worry and homework help. They were Maloney and colleagues (2015) and Poisall and colleagues (2026). Their results did not agree. So that last point is our view, not their finding.

Number games help too. Work them alongside math teaching, not in place of it. These math activities show some short ones. This guide on confidence says why proof beats praise.

Does all this change your child’s brain? “Building pathways” is a good picture of learning. It is a picture, not a brain scan. The brain-scan studies we rely on are about reading. We do not stretch them to math. What we see is simpler. Practice at the right size of hard builds the skill.

Across 177 studies and 906,311 people, more worry about math went with lower math scores. The authors say the cause is not yet known. Caviola and colleagues, Educational Psychology Review, 2022

“Building pathways is a good picture of learning. It is a picture, not a brain scan.” Laura Lurns

Laura Lurns · Learning Success expert

You don’t need a credential to be your child’s first teacher. You already are one. Sorting kids into “math kids” and the rest gets this wrong. Skills like these are built, one hard problem at a time. Our free Growth Mindset program is about praise and effort talk at home. Get the free Growth Mindset program.

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A screener is a starting point, not a diagnosis. If your child might need formal accommodations (an IEP or 504 plan), or you suspect a vision, hearing or medical cause, pursue a professional evaluation too. That is the only route to those supports.

References

  • Caviola, S., Toffalini, E., Giofrè, D., Mercader Ruiz, J., Szűcs, D., & Mammarella, I. C. (2022). Math performance and academic anxiety forms, from sociodemographic to cognitive aspects: a meta-analysis on 906,311 participants. Educational Psychology Review, 34(1), 363-399.
  • Maloney, E. A., Ramirez, G., Gunderson, E. A., Levine, S. C., & Beilock, S. L. (2015). Intergenerational effects of parents' math anxiety on children's math achievement and anxiety. Psychological Science, 26, 1480-1488.
  • Poisall, M. B., et al. (2026). Relations between parents' math anxiety and children's math learning: the role of homework help. Developmental Science.
  • Learning Success, "Revolutionizing STEM Education" (infographic, this page).
· Learning Success expert Writes about the learning brain for parents who want plain answers. Every article is grounded in current neuroscience and classroom practice.

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