Secondary
Welcome to the Dyscalculia Network’s page for children and young people.
Below, you will learn more about dyscalculia, how it can be diagnosed, and what can be done to help at school and at home.
Dyscalculia is a specific learning difficulty that some people in your school might have.
Did you know that in a group of about 20 people, at least 1 person might have dyscalculia?
Dyscalculia makes maths and numbers more difficult to understand. This means maths lessons and everyday tasks that involve numbers can be really challenging.
Dyscalculia can present differently in each person, but in general, someone with dyscalculia might struggle with:
- Counting, estimating and comparing numbers
- Understanding place value and decimals
- Remembering maths facts, like multiplication tables
- Solving maths problems (numerical and worded)
- Telling the time and understanding time duration (how long or short a period of time is)
- Counting and understanding money
This is not a full list of difficulties as dyscalculia can affect many other aspects of maths and numerical understanding.
However, it is important to know that even though some people may struggle with (one or more of) these different aspects of maths and numbers, it doesn’t necessarily mean they have dyscalculia.
Other things can cause someone to struggle with maths, like having another learning difficulty such as dyslexia, missing a lot of time from school, or feeling anxious about maths. Maths anxiety is when people feel nervous or scared about doing maths or working with numbers.
Dyscalculia is unique to the individual meaning two people with dyscalculia may experience different challenges. Additionally, dyscalculia isn’t something that goes away as you grow up, even with lots of practice and help from teachers and parents.
Therefore, Dyscalculia is a life-long learning difference. Nevertheless, with lots of hard work and support, people with dyscalculia can still learn maths and make progress!
Also, dyscalculia is not related to intelligence, meaning people with dyscalculia can be very clever and have many talents!
Support at home and at school and assessment
OR
Everyone will keep working together to do their best to help the student feel more confident about maths
To find out more about the diagnostic assessment process download the information sheet
Dyscalculia and Other Conditions
Dyscalculia is a specific learning difficulty, just like dyslexia and dyspraxia, and a developmental disability, like autism and ADHD. Because these conditions often co-occur (meaning two or more can happen together), people with dyscalculia are more likely to have one or more of these other conditions. So, if you already have a developmental condition or specific learning difficulty and find maths and numbers particularly difficult, it might be worth getting checked for dyscalculia.
However, having one condition doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll have another. Each condition can affect maths and numbers in its own unique way, even if someone does not have dyscalculia.
Dyscalculia and Mental
Health
Dyscalculia can have a big effect on your life, especially in school, where maths and number-based lessons are a major focus. Because of their experienced difficulties, many students with dyscalculia feel frustrated or anxious about maths, which can sometimes affect their overall mental well-being.
If you’re feeling more stressed, worried, or down because of struggles with maths – or for any reason at all – don’t keep it to yourself. There are adults there to support you! Talk to someone you trust, like a teacher, parent, carer, or school counsellor. They can help you find the right support to manage your feelings and experiences.
The good news is, there are lots of things we can all do to help make life with dyscalculia that bit easier.
Top Tips for someone with Dyscalculia
- Ask for help: Remember you can always ask for help. Everyone needs help sometimes, even adults! It is useful to talk to your friends or ask your teachers, parents or carers at home for help when you feel ‘stuck’, so they can help you solve the problem and progress.
- Use items you can see and touch: Try using tools like number lines, diagrams, or manipulatives to help keep track of numbers during maths problems.
- Break it down into small steps: Split difficult problems into smaller, manageable steps to make things easier and less overwhelming.
- Make it fun: Explore maths games or apps to practice in a way that’s enjoyable and less stressful. It can make numbers feel less scary!
- Make maths real: Look out for maths when you are at the shops, travelling by public transport, or playing sports. We challenge you to find maths all around you!
Some people also find their own strategies to help themselves.
For example, using a song instead of a stopwatch to time their activities and tasks. However, what may help one person, may not help another. It is important to find and use the tools that help you!
Tips to help a friend with Dyscalculia
- Be kind: When your friend is finding maths hard, be kind to them and remind them that we all find things tricky sometimes. Encourage them to keep trying and ask for help if they need it.
- Help them: You could offer to help or support them yourself. Do you know how to solve that maths problem? Or could you help them read the time? Try to help them solve the problem themselves, so that they can learn too. But be there to help them if they are really struggling.
- Remind them what strengths they have: Remind your friend that they have lots of talents. Bringing someone up when they are feeling down can help them reduce anxiety, clear their mind and work on the task at hand. It also shows to your friend that you respect them and acknowledge their worth.
- Spend time with them: At lunchtime or after school do things with your friend that they enjoy, to help them relax. Having some well-deserved rest can prepare you and your friends for the next day or week of school.
With thanks to Jess Maisey, Kinga Morsanyi and Korbinian Moeller from Loughborough University for their support producing these resources.
