{"id":853845,"date":"2026-10-25T15:12:11","date_gmt":"2026-10-25T19:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/?p=853845"},"modified":"2026-10-25T15:12:13","modified_gmt":"2026-10-25T19:12:13","slug":"your-child-doesnt-need-to-stop-making-mistakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/your-child-doesnt-need-to-stop-making-mistakes\/","title":{"rendered":"Your Child Doesn&#8217;t Need to Stop Making Mistakes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<style>\n\/* October habits series \u2014 shared look (matches the Math-U-See guide palette) *\/\n.entry-content p, .entry-content li { line-height:1.75; }\n.entry-content > h2 { color:#2d5d32; margin-top:1.9em; }\n.entry-content > h2::before { content:\"\"; display:block; width:44px; height:4px; border-radius:2px; background:#38743f; margin-bottom:14px; }\n.entry-content h3 { color:#2d5d32; }\n.entry-content p.ntml-lead { font-size:1.16em; color:#2f3a33; }\n\/* opening statement *\/\n.entry-content .ntml-hero { margin:1.3em 0 1.6em; }\n.entry-content .ntml-hero p { color:#fff; text-align:center; font-size:clamp(22px,3vw,28px); line-height:1.35; margin:0 !important; }\n\/* key lines: green bar *\/\n.entry-content p.ntml-key { border-left:4px solid #38743f; padding:2px 0 2px 18px; color:#224626; font-size:1.07em; margin:1.3em 0 !important; }\n\/* inner voice \/ things to say *\/\n.entry-content p.ntml-voice { background:#f4f7f1; border-radius:12px; padding:14px 20px; color:#224626; font-size:1.05em; margin:1.1em 0 !important; }\n.entry-content p.ntml-voice.ntml-muted { background:#f3f1ee; color:#6b6158; }\n\/* cards *\/\n.entry-content .ntml-card { margin:1.4em 0; }\n.entry-content .ntml-card > * { margin-block-start:0; }\n.entry-content .ntml-card p { margin-bottom:.55em !important; }\n.entry-content .ntml-card > :last-child { margin-bottom:0 !important; }\n.entry-content .ntml-card p.ntml-voice { background:#fff; }\n.entry-content .ntml-action h3 { font-size:14px; letter-spacing:2px; text-transform:uppercase; color:#714f38; margin:0 0 14px; }\n.entry-content .ntml-week p { text-align:center; font-size:1.05em; line-height:2.1; }\n.entry-content .ntml-flow p { text-align:center; line-height:1.9; }\n.entry-content .ntml-dots p { position:relative; padding-left:28px; }\n.entry-content .ntml-dots p::before { content:\"\"; position:absolute; left:4px; top:.62em; width:10px; height:10px; border-radius:50%; background:#38743f; }\n.entry-content .ntml-tools.wp-block-group { display:grid; grid-template-columns:1fr 1fr; gap:16px; }\n.entry-content .ntml-tools p { background:#fff; border:1px solid #e7e2db; border-radius:12px; padding:16px 18px; margin:0 !important; max-width:none; }\n@media (max-width:640px) { .entry-content .ntml-tools.wp-block-group { grid-template-columns:1fr; } }\n\/* sources *\/\n.entry-content .ntml-sources { border-top:1px solid #e7e2db; padding:18px 0 0 !important; margin-top:2.4em; }\n.entry-content .ntml-sources h3 { font-size:14px; letter-spacing:1.5px; text-transform:uppercase; color:#6b6158; margin:0 0 10px; }\n.entry-content .ntml-sources li { font-size:15px; color:#6b6158; line-height:1.6; margin-bottom:6px; }\n<\/style>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-lead wp-block-paragraph\">I used to get lots of calls and emails from parents about their children&#8217;s \u201ccareless mistakes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I understand. When you see your child make the same mistake for the third time, it&#8217;s frustrating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But here&#8217;s something I want you to know:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group ntml-card ntml-hero has-background is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-2cf3f7b5 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"border-radius:14px;background-color:#2d5d32;padding-top:28px;padding-right:32px;padding-bottom:28px;padding-left:32px\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>I make mistakes, too.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I&#8217;m Nicole the Math Lady, and I make plenty of mistakes!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The difference is that I&#8217;ve done enough math over the years that I can often <strong>catch myself<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I&#8217;ll look at something I&#8217;ve written and think:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-voice wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Wait&#8230;that doesn&#8217;t look right.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Something doesn&#8217;t make sense. So I stop and go back to figure out what happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-key wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>That&#8217;s the skill I want for your student.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not perfection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The ability to catch a mistake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What happens when we make a mistake?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When your student gets a problem wrong, they&#8217;ve just given you something really valuable: <strong>a look at how they&#8217;re thinking.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Instead of immediately giving them the correct answer, try asking:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-voice wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>\u201cShow me what you were thinking.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then let them walk you through their work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Maybe they&#8217;ll spot the mistake themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Maybe they&#8217;ll need a little help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Either way, something important is happening: they&#8217;re comparing what they <em>thought<\/em> was correct with what actually works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And research suggests that this kind of active error analysis can be a powerful way to learn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In one study of 208 middle-school students learning decimals, students who practiced <strong>identifying, explaining, and correcting errors<\/strong> performed better on a test a week later than students who simply solved similar problems and received feedback. They were also better at judging whether their own answers were correct.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That&#8217;s a pretty big deal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We&#8217;re not just trying to get the answer right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-key wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>We&#8217;re helping students learn to recognize when something isn&#8217;t right.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Learning to monitor your own thinking<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There&#8217;s a name for this skill: <strong>metacognition<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s essentially being able to think about your own thinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In math, that might sound like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group ntml-card ntml-dots has-background is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-38ea2a3e wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"border-radius:14px;background-color:#e8f0e9;padding-top:22px;padding-right:28px;padding-bottom:22px;padding-left:28px\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Does this answer make sense?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Did I follow the right steps?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Where did I go wrong?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Is there another way I could solve this?<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A 2024 meta-analysis looked at 147 studies involving more than 698,000 students and found a significant positive relationship between metacognition and mathematics achievement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In other words, being able to monitor and evaluate your own thinking is an important part of becoming a stronger math student.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And it&#8217;s something students can practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">This is why I love the Trouble Spots Report<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Trouble Spots Report gives you a wonderful opportunity to practice this with your student.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There, you can:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group ntml-card ntml-dots has-background is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-38ea2a3e wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"border-radius:14px;background-color:#e8f0e9;padding-top:22px;padding-right:28px;padding-bottom:22px;padding-left:28px\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">See your student&#8217;s original answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">See every answer they tried afterward. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Award a point if you need to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Find the reset button &#8211; in case you&#8217;d like them to try the question (or other questions) again.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So instead of saying:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-voice ntml-muted wp-block-paragraph\"><em>\u201cHere&#8217;s the answer. You did this wrong.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">you can say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-voice wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>\u201cLet&#8217;s look at this together. Show me what you were thinking.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then ask:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-voice wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>\u201cCan you find where things went wrong?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You&#8217;re giving your student a chance to do the thinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And if they can&#8217;t find the mistake, that&#8217;s when you step in and help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Research on learning from errors supports this approach: errors followed by appropriate corrective feedback can promote learning, and asking students to explain errors can help them process the underlying mathematics more deeply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">You have tools to help<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You don&#8217;t have to know how to explain every problem yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That&#8217;s why we give you several ways to help your student.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group ntml-card ntml-tools has-background is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-38ea2a3e wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"border-radius:14px;background-color:#e8f0e9;padding-top:22px;padding-right:28px;padding-bottom:22px;padding-left:28px\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Use the Solutions Manual.<\/strong><br>It gives you a high-level walk-through of the problem and helps you understand how it should be solved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Watch Nicole&#8217;s lesson.<\/strong><br>Go into your Parent Portal and watch the lesson your student was taught. You&#8217;ll hear exactly how Nicole explained the concept and can use that same approach when you work together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Join Nicole&#8217;s Facebook group.<\/strong><br>You can post a math problem there and have fellow parents chime in with an answer. All answers are reviewed by our team for correctness.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then come back to the problem and let your student try again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why catching the mistake matters<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here&#8217;s the part I really want you to remember:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-key wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>One wrong answer isn&#8217;t a big deal.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But if a student keeps using the same incorrect approach without realizing it, that mistake can become part of the way they think about the problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That&#8217;s why I don&#8217;t want you to worry about every individual mistake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Instead, <strong>look for the ones your student isn&#8217;t catching.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those are the ones worth your attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The goal is eventually for your student to do what I do:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Get an answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Look at it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And think:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-voice wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>\u201cWait&#8230;that doesn&#8217;t look right.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then go back and figure out why.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That&#8217;s not being perfect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-key wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>That&#8217;s being a mathematician.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group ntml-card ntml-action has-background is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-38ea2a3e wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"border-radius:14px;background-color:#fceed8;padding-top:22px;padding-right:28px;padding-bottom:22px;padding-left:28px\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">One simple thing to try<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The next time your student gets a problem wrong, don&#8217;t immediately tell them the answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Try saying:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ntml-voice wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>\u201cShow me what you were thinking.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You may be surprised by how much you learn from their answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And you may be even more surprised when they find the mistake themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>That&#8217;s the goal.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not a student who never makes mistakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A student who learns how to <strong>catch them, understand them, and correct them.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And that is a skill that will serve them far beyond math.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I used to get lots of calls and emails from parents about their children&#8217;s \u201ccareless mistakes.\u201d I understand. When you [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":853849,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[26,61],"tags":[17,19,34],"class_list":["post-853845","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-schooling-at-home","category-online-grading","tag-homeschool-math","tag-nicole-the-math-lady","tag-online-grading"],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/show-me-what-you-were-thinking-math-mistakes.jpg",1920,1080,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/show-me-what-you-were-thinking-math-mistakes-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/show-me-what-you-were-thinking-math-mistakes-300x169.jpg",300,169,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/show-me-what-you-were-thinking-math-mistakes-768x432.jpg",768,432,true],"large":["https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/show-me-what-you-were-thinking-math-mistakes-1024x576.jpg",1024,576,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/show-me-what-you-were-thinking-math-mistakes-1536x864.jpg",1536,864,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/show-me-what-you-were-thinking-math-mistakes.jpg",1920,1080,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Nicole Thomas","author_link":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/author\/nicolethemathlady\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"I used to get lots of calls and emails from parents about their children&#8217;s \u201ccareless mistakes.\u201d I understand. When you [&hellip;]","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/show-me-what-you-were-thinking-math-mistakes.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/853845","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=853845"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/853845\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":853894,"href":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/853845\/revisions\/853894"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/853849"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=853845"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=853845"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.nicolethemathlady.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=853845"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}