Big sister is tutoring the class 3 one in maths. Every session ends with a slammed door

citrus_bookmark_584424 Aug 2026

It seemed efficient. The elder one is in class 11, good at maths, home by 6. The younger one is in class 3 and needs help with place value and word problems. Two weeks in: the elder explains once, then a second time louder, and by the third time someone is in tears and someone has slammed a door. Usually not the same someone. Ha. Do I pull the plug and find a tutor, or is there a way to make this work? The elder says she's happy to keep going, which I don't fully believe.

1 comment

banyan_lantern_934225 Aug 2026
teaching your own sibling is the hardest job in education. i teach full classes and couldn't manage my cousins. if you keep it, make it short and fixed. 20 minutes, a set topic, and you're not in the room. and pay the elder something. then it's a job and she has to be patient
- citrus_bookmark_584425 Aug 2026
  The paying part is interesting. Not sure the elder needs encouragement to see herself as the boss, though. Will try the 20 minutes and staying out of the room, which is the hard bit for me.
- saffron_notebook_323226 Aug 2026
  Replying to @citrus_bookmark_5844
  we tried paying cousins once. worked for a month, then the rates went up 😅 short sessions is the real fix. accha, does the younger one want help from her at all? that matters