How to Know if a Child Has Dyscalculia

Dyscalculia is a term that covers a broad range of lifelong learning disabilities in math. Math disabilities are varied, so it's often difficult to pinpoint specific problem areas. Since there are so many components and skills involved with mathematical thinking, a disability affects each child's development in different ways. If you're worried about your child, use these steps to try to identify any potential math learning disability.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Early Signs

1. Note any difficulties your toddler has involving early math skills. Young children with a potential disability have difficulty grasping the meaning of numbers, learning to count or matching numbers with amounts.

2. Notice if your toddler has difficulty sorting objects by shape, size or color. Trouble recognizing patterns can be a sign of a problem as well.

3. Watch out for a struggle with recollection of people's names, often substituting names, which begin with the same letter. Older toddlers, who are talking, usually have a good grasp of putting people's names and faces together.

Older children

4. Realize when your child is mastering verbal skills in reading, writing, speaking and creative arts but is slower at developing math and problem-solving skills. Watch for problems with such basic math skills as adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing.

5. Notice when your child has trouble telling time, chronology, sequencing events, remembering schedules or following directions. This also includes a difficulty with his sense of direction, rendering him disoriented.

6. Try to see how your child handles the concepts of money. Some people with math learning disabilities can't grasp such abstract concepts as coins, bills, credit, budgeting or financial planning.

7. See if your child has longterm memory retention for math concepts. Some people with math learning disabilities have trouble retaining and retrieving math operations, even a day later.

8. Detect any difficulty your child has playing games, which require strategy or keeping score. Pay attention to your child's mental math abilities, such as estimating quantities, figuring out change or counting days to an event.

Getting help

9. Consult with other parents whose children have math learning disabilities. Ask for advice and guidance on how best to handle your child's situation.

10. Raise any concerns with your child's teachers. Ask them specific questions about her math related performance in school and ask them to look out for specific problem areas you've noticed. Be polite but persistent.

11. Have your child evaluated by a highly trained professional if you believe a problem exists. A professional looks for how your child comprehends and uses math skills in solving everyday and advanced problems.

Tips & Warnings

• Never label your child with a negative image of being slow in math. Such behavior only hinders his progress in battling his disability.

Resources

• Visit NCLD for imformation on math learning disorders.