Kids need help. But they can easily become defensive and frustrated at their inability to understand.

Parents want to help. But you get impatient and frustrated—because you don’t always know how to help.

Your mutual frustration and anxiety get in the way of your being able to work together successfully. Here are a few things parents can do to help avoid such high emotions and their resulting power struggles:

• Arrange for extra help after school.

• Partner with other parents to “trade off” tutoring each other’s child.

• Get an older sibling or other relative to help.

• Hire a tutor.

• Let your child study with a buddy.

• Make sure the “calmer” parent in your household works with your child.

• Discuss your subject strengths and weaknesses with your spouse or partner. Then agree on who would be the best person to coach your child in which subject. (Perhaps Mom is good at math, for example, and Dad is good at reading.)

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