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Solutions to Support Children with Dyacalculia

Some of the solutions families use to help manage symptoms from dyscalculia include:

1. Ask Your Primary Care Provider

Your child’s primary care provider (PCP) can use developmental screening tools to help determine if math issues are a concern. A PCP can also help you to rule out medical concerns that can look like dyscalculia symptoms.

Learn how to bring up a concern.

2. Find a Mental Health Professional

Families who choose to pursue diagnosis sometimes work with psychologists, neuropsychologists or with multi-functional teams. Before working with these professionals, make sure to check insurance coverage (see also, “I suspect my child has a learning disability” in the FAQ).

Many families also work with mental health professionals to help their children with counseling or skills coaching.

Learn how to choose a mental health provider to work with your family (guide) (podcast).

3. Improve Number Awareness at Home

The more opportunities children have to work with numbers, the more comfortable they will be. You can help by pointing out numbers at home, while shopping or in other activities that your child enjoys.

Discover more at-home activities in this article.

4. Work with a Math Tutor or Educational Specialist

While students may receive math intervention in school, many families choose to use private tutors to supplement school services. Families who choose to employ private tutors may also be able to access funding through state and county resources like Learning Aid.

Search the provider directory for a tutor or schedule an Ask Us session to get 1:1 help finding providers near you.

5. Work with an Occupational Therapist (OT)

Dyscalculia impacts visual-spatial processing, which is one of the reasons children with dyscalculia may struggle to understand where their bodies are in space, how symbols relate to each other and how to use visual information, like maps. There is research (example) to support using occupational therapy interventions to help students with mathematical problem solving.

Search the provider directory for an OT or schedule an Ask Us session to get 1:1 help finding providers near you.

6. Build on Strengths

Children with learning disabilities are often very bright and creative, but may struggle with poor self-esteem or academic anxiety related to problems in the classroom. Helping your child to understand their strengths can build confidence and self-esteem.

Learn more about academic anxiety with this podcast or listen to this podcast for ideas to build self-esteem.

7. Use Assistive Technology

While calculators are the most common form of assistive technology used to help students with dyscalculia, there are other tools that can help. Number lines (to help visualize relationships), and graph paper (to keep columns lined up) are inexpensive and easy to use. Families also sometimes use alarms and smart technology to help with time management.

Learn about some of the tools available with this article. You can also try assistive technology right now by clicking the purple icon on the lower left side of this screen. Next, click the Font tool until OpenDyslexic is selected.

8. Communicate with School

We still have a lot to learn about dyscalculia – especially because it looks different for every person. Consistent communication with your child’s teacher can help you to work as a team to support your child’s unique strengths and needs.

Learn how to communicate better with your child’s school (guide) (podcast).

9. Consider Special Education

Many students who have problems with math continue to learn well with peers or in small groups. Often, this can help students to catch up and become more independent with math. For some students, these supports may not be enough to make adequate progress. When this happens, your child’s teacher may recommend an evaluation for special education.