Show Notes
If your child understood something perfectly last night and can't remember it this morning, this episode explains exactly what's happening, and why more repetition isn't the fix.
In this episode I look at why times tables and number facts often refuse to stick for children with a specific learning difficulty in maths, including dyscalculia. It comes down to working memory, and how information does (or doesn't) make its way into long-term memory.
We cover: Why some children have to rebuild a fact from scratch every time, rather than simply recalling it What working memory actually is, and why it fills up faster for some children than others Why understanding in the evening can disappear by morning, and what that has to do with consolidation Why drilling times tables often doesn't work for these children, and what to do instead What genuine fluency means (it isn't speed)
There's a practical takeaway at the end, and a companion guide to help you put it into practice with your own child.
Access the free companion guide here: https://learn.aedds.co.uk/cgsu
Next episode: Is my child just 'bad at maths'? This is a phrase I want to take apart carefully, because I think it does more quiet damage than people realise.
More from Safety in Numbers: For Parents of Children with Maths Difficulties
"What does this mean for my child's future?" is one of the first questions parents ask once dyscalculia is properly on their radar.
Maths conversations at home can turn into battlegrounds without either parent or child quite knowing how it happened. In this episode, I look at what's really going on underneath those difficult conversations and why the goal isn't getting one conversation right, but understanding what every conversation is building over time.
If you've ever left a parents' evening reassured, only to watch your child struggle just as much at home the following week, this episode is for you. I look at why "my child is getting support" and "my child's support is actually working" aren't the same thing, and what tends to get in the way of the second one, without any of it being anyone's fault. I also cover the different, less obvious shapes a maths difficulty can take at school: the helpful child, the funny one, the child who's called lazy or easily distracted, and why a parent is often the one person who can see what's really going on underneath.
Your child can do the method at home. They can explain it, work through it calmly, get the right answer. Then in class, or in a test, or the moment they're put on the spot, it disappears.
If your child still uses their fingers to work out maths, you may have wondered whether they should have grown out of it by now.