Why does my child forget maths so quickly?
But she knew this last week!
We spent ages practising that and now he can’t remember it!
If your child has dyscalculia, forgetting maths is not unusual. In fact, it is one of the most common difficulties associated with dyscalculia and can be incredibly frustrating for both children and parents.
Forgetting is Common in Dyscalculia
A couple of weeks ago, in my face to face group class for students with dyscalculia, we were learning about adding 9 by adding 10 and then taking 1 away. All of the students understood this – we used cuisenaire rods to develop our understanding. However, one of the students was struggling to get the right answers. The reason she was struggling was that she had forgotten how to add 10! She knew she had forgotten about it and had this blank look on her face. By using the cuisenaire rods, we did a little practise of adding 10 to different numbers and, after 2 examples, she was like, ‘Now I remember!” This is really really common but what is important to understand is that, although they have forgotten, and it feels like your child doesn’t know anything, something has stuck because when you visit it again, parts of it come back and the parts that don’t come back are easier to learn because it has been done before.
Because of the forgetting, using equipment to create visual images makes a huge difference. Using equipment helps your child to develop understanding of maths and the physical process of getting out the right equipment and using it to work out what is happening means that it is easier to remember.
It doesn’t mean your child isn’t trying.
All too often I have heard parents say that their child’s teacher at school thinks that they aren’t trying. This is usually because their teacher doesn’t understand dyscalculia and how it affects students. Every student that I have taught who has a dyscalculia diagnosis works exceptionally hard.
Most students, before they have a diagnosis of dyscalculia, feel stupid. They know that their peers can understand and do more maths than they can. Often they have been labeled as lazy. However, this is far from the truth. Your child is most likely trying their absolute best, it’s just exceptionally hard for them to understand and often the teaching is so beyond their understanding that they just feel lost and hopeless.
Many parents worry that their child is not concentrating or practising maths. Without exception, I have found that when the maths is at the right level for the student and taught in the way that works best for them, every student concentrates and works exceptionally hard and this will be the same for your child too. Furthermore, many children with dyscalculia also have maths anxiety, which also affects how well they learn.
Why repetition matters
As I mentioned before and you have noticed with your child, forgetting is a normal part of dyscalculia. Because of this, a lot of repetition is needed for your child to learn and remember any aspect of maths. Giving your child lots of worksheets to practise a skill is going to be demoralising and feel your child with dread. It is far better to practise a skill through playing a game. Not only is it more enjoyable but you can practise for as long or short a time as you need. This will also help your child as there is evidence that if you learn while playing a game you need less repetition than through completing worksheets.
Through my work with students who have dyscalculia, it can often seem like they are not making any progress. We may be revisiting the same topic for several weeks and each time we revisit it, the student looks like they have never seen it before. Sometimes progress is very slow. However, it is important to remember that learning isn’t linear. Often there is a plateau for a few weeks before it is possible to see more progression. Over the last few weeks, in one of my group sessions, we have been working on understanding multiplication as rows of numbers. Each week we have come back to the same idea but built upon it but the concept of splitting up the rows into two or more groups has been really hard to grasp. Each time we do an example, it makes sense and then immediately after, it doesn't! However, last week, it stuck! Everyone understood and was able to answer several questions with minimal help.
A lot of parents mention to me that they have to give lots of reminders because their child doesn’t remember. But I don’t know anyone who can remember everything without reminders! We have our phones with reminders, make lists to remember different things, use calendars, etc. Needing reminders is normal and it is helpful to remember this when working with your child.
What can parents do?
As a parent, there are lots of practical strategies that you can do. Firstly, remember that whatever you do with your child, little and often is the most important. I say to the parents of the students that I work with that 1 calculation every day is far more beneficial that 7 on the same day. Firstly, one calculation feels achievable and secondly, doing a little each day helps with the forgetting. Secondly, play games. There are some amazing games that are lots of fun to play but will also be helping your child with maths. Some of my current favourites are Shut the Box, Top Trumps and Skyjo.
As I have mentioned previously, manipulatives are really helpful for your child. Although there are some specific maths manipulatives, you already have lots of things in your house that you can use - counters, lego, measuring cups, toys, rulers, etc. There are lots of activities that you can do using this equipment - it doesn’t have to be formal maths.It is so important to celebrate small wins. For example, if your child remembers a friend of ten, this is great. If your child has been struggling with counting up in tens and they can do it, celebrate! Each celebration provides your child with encouragement and motivation and they can see themselves making progress.
Finally, and this is probably the most important, don’t panic. If your child sees you panicking then they will pick up on it and start feeling the same. If your child can see that you are calm and accepting, then they will also start to feel the same.
Progress is often hidden
Because forgetting is clear to see, and it is what we all notice, it is often hard to realise that your child has made progress. For example, a few weeks ago, I was working with a couple of students on subtraction. When I put up the first question, I saw 2 blank looks! They had both forgotten! But, by me drawing a line, it jogged their memory of what to do. And the great thing was that, they had remembered that we took away from the beginning and then jumped to the next friendly number and finally jumped to the end number. All the rest they could do, and explain to me what they were doing and how it worked. To an outsider, it looked like they had forgotten but to me, they just needed a little memory jog to get them started. Furthermore, once the number line had gone up on the board, both students looked really confident and were eager to show me what they knew. You may see forgetting but within that forgetting is growth.
Looking at the bigger picture
Your child may have been diagnosed with dyscalculia but this doesn’t mean that they cannot learn maths. They definitely can learn maths. It is important to remember that forgetting is part of the journey and that progress takes time. As long as your child is making progress, that’s what counts. Celebrating the progress your child is making is really important too. But, the most important thing is that confidence matters. If your child feels more confident with their maths, then they are going to be more motivated, resilient and keep trying.