Non Linear Learning - Rethinking Education for Neurodivergent Learners

187 Not a "Math Person"? That's a Myth - even if your child has Down Syndrome

Non Linear Learning - Rethinking Education for Neurodivergent Learners

Show Notes

Why are so many of us terrified of math—but not history, art, or reading? In this episode of Nonlinear Learning, Dr. Vaish Sarathy sits down with Dr. Aditya Nagrath, founder of Elephant Learning, to why math anxiety exists and why it disproportionately affects children with disabilities.

Tune in to learn:

Why math anxiety shows up earlier and more intensely than other academic anxieties

How early gaps in understanding compound into full-blown learning trauma by 3rd grade

What the phrase "I'm not a math person" is really masking—and how to dismantle it

The problem with waiting until a child is "ready" for math

This is for parents burned out by the grind of addition, AND educators trying to find a new way forward ...

Key Quotes: "The real problem isn't the math—it's the meaning we've assigned to our struggles with it." — Dr. Aditya Nagrath "There is no diagnosis that disqualifies someone from understanding math. You just have to meet them at their level." — Dr. Vaish Sarathy Resources & Mentions: Learn more about Dr. Nagrath and Elephant Learning: www.elephantlearning.com

Listen to Vaish's TEDx talk: "Who Decides How Smart You Are?" https://www.drvaishsarathy.com/

More from Non Linear Learning - Rethinking Education for Neurodivergent Learners

Sep 30, 2026

Your child isn't choosing to melt down. By the time behavior shows up, the brain has already decided, and the thinking brain is out of the room. Dr. Lisa Riegel explains why schools most often miss this, and what to do instead.

Sep 7, 2026

Why spelled communication is not a guessing game:

Jul 21, 2026

We don't make a neurotypical kid prove they can read before we hand them a book. We just teach them to read.

Jul 1, 2026

You've talked to 10 therapists. Tried 20 strategies. And your child still goes from calm to crisis in 30 seconds - for reasons no-one understands. Understanding a body requires that we understand the sensory information coming in. And Dr. Dana Johnson - OT, PhD, and founder of the Spellers Center - tells us that there are not 5 but 8 senses. Dana joins Non Linear Learning for the 3rd time to talk about interoception: the eighth sense, the one almost nobody gets taught, and the one that might explain what's been happening in front of you all along. Listen along to learn: Why your child's meltdown appears so sudden

Jun 15, 2026

We talk a lot about what our students can't do. But something that educators have found over the years is that there is a scatter to the skills we see in our students. The wildly uneven profile that we see could actually be a blessing. Mark Talaga, counselor, speaker, and founder of the Center for Identity Potential, joins the podcast to talk about asynchronous development in gifted and twice-exceptional learners. And here's what hit me: we're working the same problem from opposite ends. Where there is a sharp strength, there is often a significant deficit, but the opposite is true as well! This conversation got under my skin in the best way. Tune in to this episode to learn: What "asynchrony" actually means in gifted and disabled learners

See all episodes →