How to Teach Math to Learning Disabled Students
A 2005 study in the journal "Teacher Education and Special Education" showed that teachers receive plenty of training about how to teach reading to students with learning disabilities, but that they receive nowhere near as much training in how to teach math to these same students. There are several methods and tips you can use to teach math to students with learning disabilities, and many of these techniques can help the rest of the students in your class as well.
Instructions
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Use manipulatives and hands-on learning as much as possible. Available manipulatives may include base-10 blocks, algebra tiles or tangrams.
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Show students how the math concepts can relate to their lives. Because students with learning disabilities may need to exert extra effort in order to master difficult math concepts, they will need extra motivation. Connecting what they are learning to their own lives can provide this motivation.
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Use assistive technology, such as computers, whenever possible. You can find computerized demonstrations online of various math concepts. Allow students to do research online, or provide students with review games they can access through the Internet.
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Teach students self-regulation and self-monitoring strategies. To do this, help students make small subgoals for themselves that will be easy to reach, eventually leading to larger subgoals that will be somewhat more difficult. Then help them structure their time to meet those goals. Using subgoals can be especially useful for students who are used to failure in math class, in combating their "learned helplessness" and showing them that they can succeed.
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Tips & Warnings
Experiment with problem-solving stories to see whether they can help to motivate your students with learning disabilities as well.
Never denigrate students for their learning disabilities. Students with learning disabilities should be treated with the same respect that your other students receive.
References
- Photo Credit math image by jaddingt from Fotolia.com
