Is your child struggling with math? The solution may not just be spending more time with him over the weekends or asking a tutor to help. He may have a learning disability that’s specific to math. Here’s all you need to know about dyscalculia symptoms to get your child the help he needs.
What is Dyscalculia?
Dyscalculia is a specific learning disability that affects a person’s ability to understand and work with numbers and mathematical concepts.
It is characterized by difficulties in learning and comprehending arithmetic, as well as performing mathematical calculations accurately and efficiently.
Dyscalculia is not simply a matter of being “bad at math”; it is a neurological condition that can significantly impact a person’s academic and daily life.
Prevalence and common age of onset
The prevalence of dyscalculia varies, but it’s estimated to affect around 5% to 7% of the population. It can manifest at any age, but it is often identified during the early school years when children begin to learn math skills.
Some children may display signs of dyscalculia as early as preschool, while others may not experience significant difficulties until they encounter more complex mathematical concepts in elementary school.
However, dyscalculia can persist into adulthood if left untreated, impacting various aspects of life that involve mathematical reasoning and calculations.
Image from Shutterstock
Dyscalculia Symptoms
Dyscalculia symptoms present themselves in many ways but common signs include:
- Difficulty learning numbers and recognizing numbers (younger kids)
- Difficulty solving math problems
- Confusing mathematical signs and the variable ‘x’
- Difficulty with everyday tasks like checking change and reading analog clocks
- Having trouble differentiating between left and right
- Inability to read a sequence of numbers
- Inability to differentiate between numbers (for example 12 and 21)
- Difficulty counting backward
- Has trouble estimating
- Trouble recalling rote learning (skip counting, for example) even if practiced
- Difficulty solving math calculations
- Forgets learned procedures, especially more complex ones such as long-division
- Exhibits anxiety when faced with math
Here is a video to learn more about dyscalculia symptoms.
Causes and Risk Factors
Research on identifying the exact causes of dyscalculia is still in its infancy. However, there have been some studies that show a link between the disorder and how the following items below affect the part of the brain that processes math:
- Low birth rate
- Turner’s syndrome – A genetic condition that affects missing. Because of missing or incomplete chromosomes, a person with the syndrome experiences developmental problems, heart problems, learning disabilities, and social adjustment issues
- Fetal alcohol syndrome – A condition caused when a pregnant mom drinks alcohol. This leads to problems in the child’s mental and physical development
It is also possible to develop a learning disability after a brain injury.
Complications of dyscalculia
Dyscalculia can lead to various complications in a person’s academic, professional, and daily life. Some of these complications and challenges associated with dyscalculia include:
1. Academic Struggles
Dyscalculia often manifests during the early school years, leading to difficulties in understanding and performing mathematical tasks. This can result in lower grades in math-related subjects and a lack of confidence in one’s academic abilities.
2. Emotional and psychological effects
Frustration, anxiety, and a sense of failure can develop as a result of ongoing difficulties with math. These negative emotions can have a significant impact on a person’s self-esteem and mental well-being.
3. Limited career options
In adulthood, dyscalculia can affect career choices and opportunities, especially if a job requires strong mathematical skills. Some individuals with dyscalculia may struggle with tasks involving budgeting, financial planning, or data analysis.
4. Daily life challenges
Dyscalculia can affect everyday activities that involve basic math skills, such as measuring ingredients for cooking, calculating expenses, or managing finances. It can also lead to difficulties with tasks like telling time or understanding schedules.
5. Social isolation
People with dyscalculia may avoid situations that require math skills, leading to social isolation. They might feel embarrassed or anxious about their difficulties, which can affect their relationships and social interactions.
6. Co-occurring conditions
Dyscalculia often co-occurs with other learning disabilities, such as dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), or language disorders, which can compound the challenges faced by individuals.
It’s important to note that with proper diagnosis, support, and intervention, many individuals with dyscalculia can develop strategies to overcome these challenges and lead successful, fulfilling lives. Early identification and targeted interventions can significantly improve a person’s mathematical abilities and overall well-being.
Image from Shutterstock
Tests and Diagnosis
Diagnosing dyscalculia involves educational assessments, cognitive testing, and psychological evaluation. It includes reviewing educational history, conducting math achievement tests, and assessing cognitive abilities.
The process aims to identify persistent math difficulties while ruling out other potential causes. An interdisciplinary approach helps provide a comprehensive evaluation for appropriate intervention.
What can you do? Treatments and drugs
There are no drugs prescribed to a child with dyscalculia. However, since the learning disability usually occurs with other disorders or conditions, such as ADHD, depression, or anxiety, a doctor may prescribe medication to help treat these or their symptoms.
Interventions are designed to help improve the skills of children who have dyscalculia:
- Educational therapy – to give tools on how to address issues brought on by dyscalculia
- Speech therapy – to help improve reading and speaking skills related to math
- Occupational therapy – to help deal with spatial issues, which some kids with dyscalculia have
- Counseling – to help with frustrations or anxieties caused by the learning disability
Support at home
Fortunately, like all learning difficulties, dyscalculia symptoms can be improved with patience, repetition and specialized help. Here are some strategies that you can incorporate at home to help your child with dyscalculia.
- Use any visual information that may be provided (picture, chart, graph) or make your own
- Since math is essentially a form of language, that uses numbers instead of words, communicate frequently and clearly with your child about what is required when working on a mathematical problem
- Get your child to draw a picture to help understand the problem
- Celebrate small accomplishments, especially since these are big mental challenges for your child to have overcome
- Spend extra time with children in memorizing maths facts. You can consider using mnemonics or even music or rhyme to help with memorizing
- Consider going to a dyscalculia specialist who can teach your child specific strategies to cope with the learning difficulty
Activities
Playing math games is another great way to help a child improve on dyscalculia symptoms outside the school setting. Here are the types of games you can play at home:
- Board games, such as Snakes and Ladders, help a child match dots on a die and count how many spaces to move correctly
- Dominoes and card games. Ask him to match sets and numbers without him feeling like he is doing schoolwork
- Spatial strategy games such as Battleship, chess, or checkers
- Strategy games that require organizing and re-organizing pieces. Play card games such as Uno
- Games that require managing resources such as Monopoly.
The most important thing to remember is to never make or let your child feel stupid. After all, this condition does not mean your child can’t do maths, it just means he has to learn it a different way. Don’t get disheartened but get creative in the way you teach your child those basic mathematical concepts.
Additional reports from Marhiel Garrote
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