Testing for Dyscalculia: Do I Need It? Where Do I Get It?
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Do you or your child need to be tested for dyscalculia?
Even if one could avoid doing math altogether, dyscalculia interferes with all aspects of number processing. Many people with math disorder have trouble remembering addresses and phone numbers. They may invert numbers, for instance writing "274 Main Street" Instead of "724 Main Street". Errors like this have led some people to refer to this disorder as "math dyslexia", and have a significant impact on daily life.
Of course, a lot of people think they're "bad at math" or "no good with numbers". So when does it become a disorder? How do you know that you or your child should be tested for dyscalculia -- and how do you get tested?
Contents at a Glance
Is Dyscalculia Really A Problem?
In a word, YES.
I Hate Math
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Dyscalculia is not diagnosed as often as other learning disabilities, like dyslexia. When a child struggles to read, it's usually very obvious to teachers and parents, and therefor much more likely to be diagnosed. Besides, everybody knows that literacy is important, and that someone who can't read will face extremely limited opportunities later on in life.
When a child struggles with math, many parents or teachers just shrug their shoulders. Some people are just bad at math, right? No big deal.
The following link is to an article about my life as an adult with math disorder. My learning disability has dramatically impacted every part of my life, from the kind of work I am able to do, to the kinds of games I am able to play with friends, and everything in between.
Dyscalculia Assessment
Testing for Math Learning Disability
Dyscalculia Assessment
Amazon Price: $51.60 (as of 05/30/2012)
Written by experts in the field, this assessment allows teachers to pinpoint areas where their students are having difficulties in math, so they can use that information to help those students progress. Aimed at primary grades but adaptable for older children as well.
Does My Child Need A Dyscalculia Assessment?
Signs and Symptoms of Math Disorder
Times Tables
Chauvet, Isabelle
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This list of 24 dyscalculia symptoms comes from the Dyscalculia Center of the United Kingdom. Answer each question for yourself, or read each question to your child. If you or your child can answer "yes" to more than half of these questions, it is worth seeking a formal diagnosis of math disorder.
- I sometimes see a number written down, but when I copy it, I write the numbers in the wrong order.
- When using a phone I dial numbers in the wrong order.
- I can't remember numbers - even when I use them often - such as telephone numbers that I dial a lot.
- I always find adding up and taking away difficult.
- I can't understand what fractions are all about.
- When someone mentions odd and even numbers I don't understand what they mean.
- When someone mentions odd and even numbers I have to think very carefully to work out which is which.
- I could never work in a shop because I could never work out how much change to give someone.
- The 24 hour clock always confuses me totally.
- I have never been able to subtract larger numbers.
- I have never been able to do "times tables".
- Sometimes I see signs like + or รท but I can't remember what they are called. If someone
says "divide" I can't think of the symbol. - I know that everyone else in my class understands what "square root" means but I really
have no idea.I find it really hard to copy a stream of numbers from a board onto paper. - Most of the people I work with can use a calculator, but I never get the right answer.
- When I get into a maths problem I often forget where I have got to, and can't finish it off.
- Sometimes I forget the names of shapes like a triangle or a semi-circle.
- When I work out a maths question on the page, the working is always very messy.
- Sometimes I know the answer to a maths problem, but can't explain how I got to that answer.
- I get really confused between the meaning of high numbers such as 10,000 and 9,999 and I can't work out which one is higher.
- When I go abroad I can never get the hang of foreign currency and always let someone else sort out the money. I never know what the equivalent is in British money.
- I don't understand percentages at all.
- I know there are problems which say "if it takes a man 5 minutes to drive 10 miles, how long does it take him to drive 12 miles?" But I never have any idea how to do them even though other people in my class can.
- Maths frightens me. I really don't understand it at all.
- Sometimes when I am faced with a question that has to do with numbers I just cannot cope and become very anxious.
Remember, if you or your child can answer "yes" to more than half of these questions, it's worth seeking a diagnosis for math disorder.
- Online Dyscalculia Screening, UK
- The Dyscalculia Centre of the United Kingdom offers remedial training for adults and children with dyscalculia. Also at this site are resources for testing and screening that may be used by teachers and psychologists.
Who Can Give A Dyscalculia Assessment?
What's a "qualified practitioner"?
A Schoolboy Ponders over His Maths Homework
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OK, so maybe you've read the list of symptoms, and you think you or your child should be tested for dyscalculia. Who can administer a test like this? Where do you find such a person?
Tests for math learning disability are usually administered by one of the following people:
- Clinical psychologist
- School psychologist
- Educational psychologist
- Developmental psychologist
- Neuropsychologist
- Psychometrist
- Occupational therapist (tests sensory disorders that can lead to learning problems)
- Speech and language therapist
This list retrieved from helpguide.org
One of these professionals will administer a series of tests to measure overall intelligence, sensory processing ability, and specific cognitive functions such as mathematics. A diagnosis of math disorder is usually given when performance in mathematics is significantly weaker than a person's overall aptitude.
- Diagnostic Evaluation from Renee Newman, Dyscalculia.org
- Dyscalculia.org is an invaluable clearinghouse of information about math disorder. The owner of the site is also qualified to test for math disability.
Does Your Child Show Signs of Dyscalculia?
How to Get Your Child Tested for Math Disorder
5 Out Of 4 People Have A Problem With Fractions
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In the United States, school districts are required by law to provide free testing for learning disabilities to residents under the age of 21 (in some states, up to the age of 26). Nonetheless, many school districts are reluctant to pay for testing and remediation. You and your child will stand a much better chance if you know how to navigate the bureaucracy.
If you suspect that your child has dyscalculia, the link below will provide you with detailed, step-by-step information that will assist you in getting the help you need for your child.
- Dyscalculia.org: How To Obtain Learning Disability Diagnosis
- Diagnostic guidance for learning disability diagnosis from your school district.
Learning Plans for Dyscalculia
How to Support Your Child or Student
Are You An Adult Who Might Have Dyscalculia?
How to Get Tested for Math Disability As An Adult
Page from Abraham Lincoln's
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If you are an adult who is no longer eligible for free testing through your school district, there are other options available to you. If you are a college student, you can ask for a referral from your school's office of student services. Your state's Office of Rehabilitation Services will also be able to assist you.
If you have health insurance, your insurance provider may be able to recommend someone who can give you a full neuropsychiatric evaluation, including testing for learning disabilities. They may also pay for part or all of the test.
- Online Dyscalculia Screening from Dyscalculia.org
- Click through to the Math Learning Disability Checklist at Dyscalculia.org. After taking the screening test, you will be given the option to submit your answers if you like, and ask for help if you need it.
- Dyscalculia Diagnosis and Legal Matters: Colleges and Universities
- Federal law requires that colleges and universities accommodate students with diagnosed learning disabilities. This page describes the legal definitions of "diagnosis" and what universities are required to do with them.
- Guidance for Adults Seeking Dyscalculia Diagnosis
- Adults with dyscalculia need to follow certain steps to receive an evaluation for their disorder. This link will tell you exactly what steps to follow to obtain a diagnosis of math disorder.
Living With Dyscalculia
Because it doesn't go away when you graduate
Got Rhythm? Got Music? Got Dyscalculia?
Math Disorder and Musical Difficulties
Musical Dyscalculia Symptoms
- May have difficulty with formal aspects of music education, such as sight reading and music theory
- May have difficulty learning fingering to play an instrument
- May experience difficulty counting beats and measures
Music and Dyslexia: Opening New Doors
Amazon Price: $500.00 (as of 05/31/2012)
Written in the UK, where "dyslexia" encompasses "dyscalculia", this book covers the difficulties that students with learning disabilities may have with formal music education -- and how they can overcome those difficulties.
Dyscalculia and the Big Picture
Visual and Spatial Aspects of Math Disorder
Map of Discovery
Panossian, Paul
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- May have difficulty reading a map or remembering the names and locations of geographic features
- May get lost easily and have a poor sense of direction
- May have trouble picturing mechanical processes or visualizing the location of items, such as numbers on a clock
Visual Perception Problems in Children With AD/HD, Autism, And Other Learning Disabilities
Amazon Price: $15.56 (as of 05/30/2012)
Math learning disability can go hand in hand with visual and spatial processing problems. Identifying these problems, for yourself or for your child, will help with math as well as with activities of daily life, such as using a map.
Dyscalculia, Sports, and Athletics
Let me see ... am I in right field or left field?
Sports and Kinesthetic Dyscalculia Symtoms
- May be physically uncoordinated
- May have difficulty with sports that require rapid changes in movement or direction
- May have difficulty remembering physical sequences, such as athletic plays or dance steps
Understanding Motor Skills in Children with Dyspraxia, ADHD, Autism, and Other Learning Disabilities: A Guide to Improving Coordination (JKP Essentials Series)
Amazon Price: $12.08 (as of 05/31/2012)
Dyscalculia, like other learning disabilities, can affect a child's motor coordination skills. If your child has math disorder, this book will help you to understand the physical challenges they face.
Playing Games with Dyscalculia
Math Disorder Can Impact Social Life
Post Mortem
Coolidge, Cassius...
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Dyscalculia and Playing Games
- May have trouble remembering rules to board games or card games
- May have difficulty keeping score, or remembering whose turn it is when playing games
- May have difficulty with strategic planning in games, such as chess
Shared Moments: Learning Games for Children With Disabilities
Amazon Price: $17.92 (as of 05/30/2012)
People with dyscalculia often have trouble with games of chance, skill and strategy (and that pretty much covers games, doesn't it?). These games are targeted for children with disabilities, enabling them to take part in this important social activity.
Do You Have Dyscalculia? Does Your Child?
Join the conversation!
Guestbook Comments
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prosperity66 Jul 27, 2011 @ 4:36 am | delete
- As said in another lens of yours about dyscalculia, I have it and instead of many people, I'm good at math: I always find the right sum, the right amount of money, the right total.
Sadly, it's rarely the one asked on the bill or the right amount expected from the chief, hehehe.
But dyscalculia is almost unknown problem. I experienced it with my mother not long ago...
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SandyPeaks
Jul 13, 2011 @ 8:51 am | delete
- Knew about this but don't fit the criteria so can't vote. Just hate algebra! Blessed by a SquidAngel.
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GonnaFly
Jul 11, 2011 @ 12:46 am | delete
- What an excellent article. I must admit I couldn't vote in your poll above because I have heard of dyscalculia but no-one in my family has it. This lens has been blessed by the maths angel and added to my best maths resources lens.
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LKW31
Jul 10, 2011 @ 9:13 am | delete
- Just popped back because I really liked this lens and noticed that my first comment didn't come up! In my first comment I said that I have dyscalculia and although I think I am a lot better now, I still have to count on my fingers! I really identified with your list of "symptoms" for dyscalculia, over half in that list apply to me. Thank you for a great lens and I hope it helps lots of people. (My second comment was the one below, I squid liked it and got a 100 points, whoop!)
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Mickie_G
Jul 10, 2011 @ 8:58 am | delete
- Very informative article you have here. I consider myself as "numerically challenged". I often transpose numbers while handwriting or typing. I was never great at math in school, but always passed my courses. Then, I became a Montessori teacher and I had "lightbulb" moments almost every day. For example, I never really understood the concept of "square roots" until I visually saw a square root using the Montessori equipment. I still have trouble figuring one out, but at least I know what one is.
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LKW31
Jul 8, 2011 @ 7:11 pm | delete
- Ooh and btw, just squidliked this lens and got 100 points! Very glad I visited!
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