Our Top 5 Blog Posts on Dyscalculia

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We have dipped into the blog archives to find our content on dyscalculia that has proved most useful to our readers. We’d like to share these articles here as the ones that, going by popularity and response in the comments, resonate the most with our audience. Thank you for reading!


1. Helping Adults with Maths Learning Difficulties

Our top post is a guest post from educator Sarah Jarvis and she covers a topic on which it can be difficult to find in-depth information: adult math learning difficulties. The post lists reasons why adults may be struggling with maths such as poor schooling, maths anxiety and visual stress difficulties, how dyscalculia could remain undiagnosed in many adults and what you can do to help yourself or someone with dyscalculia/maths difficulties.


2. Dyscalculics: The Famous, The Successful, The Inspiring

In at number two: The Famous, The Successful, The Inspiring. Well-known dyscalculics, leading us to think that there is a need for spotlighting dyscalculic role models. Singer Cher and actress Mary Tyler Moore make the list of famous people with dyscalculia.

There is plenty of information on famous dyslexics available but much less on dyscalculics. We try to share examples of success achieved by dyscalculics and update this page regularly. Read more.


3. What is it Like to Have Dyscalculia?

This post looks more deeply into the struggles dyscalculics face. A special focus is given to those difficulties caused when a child is dyscalculic but the condition goes unrecognised or misunderstood at home and school. This can lead to deep feelings of anxiety and a lack of confidence in a dyscalculic child. Hopefully, as dyscalculia becomes better understood, support and intervention will also increase. Read more.


4. Dyscalculia: The Secret Behind IKEA’s Product Names.

The founder of IKEA, Ingvar Kamprad, is known to have suffered from dyscalculia. The traditional numeral product codes used in most businesses seemed like an unending nightmare to him. To avoid the challenging typing of numbers in the computer system, he decided to name his products using names! This example shows that dyscalculia does not have to automatically be a hindrance and that the experience of having a learning difference can also shape innovative approaches to common situations and lead to extraordinary careers. Read more here.


5. Homeschooling and Dyscalculia

While some dyscalculics receive the support and intervention they need from their teachers and therapists, others struggle with their schools’ lack of resources or awareness. In the latter case, parents of dyscalculic children may consider homeschooling if this is a legal option where they live. This post covers it all read more.

6 Tips to Make Maths Fun!


Most children find mathematics interesting and encouraging their interest is simpler than you think, as mathematics is a big part of everyday life. In this article, we are offering you some ideas, how to create a playful link between mathematics and daily routine.


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Dyscalculia: The Secret Behind IKEA’s Product Names.

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The Swedish brand IKEA is known all around the world for its affordable furniture and household items. The Quartz news outlet discussed the success story of the brand and its system behind the unconventional products titles. The founder of IKEA, Ingvar Kamprad, is known to have had dyscalculia. The traditional numeral product codes used in most businesses seemed like an unending nightmare to him. To avoid the challenging typing of numbers in the computer system, he decided to name his products using letters. This lead to the invention of a naming system referencing specific semantic groups dependently on the range of the product to be titled. For instance, bathroom articles are named after Swedish lakes and bodies of water, whereas bed textiles refer to flowers and plants. Today IKEA is famous around the world for its unusual product names such as Grönkulla (for bed sheets) or Knutstorp (for a chair lounge), which positively contribute to the marketing and fame of the company.

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How Alex Works With His Dyscalculia

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This story tells us of a child with dyscalculia, that’s familiar to thousands of children and their parents. It is not aimed to hurt or stigmatise anyone. One could write about dyslexia in almost the same way as dyscalculia is explained to you here.


Alexander looks forward to school


Alexander is a cheerful, bright child. After two years of nursery school, he is happy to be able to go to the first lesson together with his classmates. At school, he learns quickly. He likes gymnastics, reading and doing small experiments. Only calculating seems hard to him. Somehow the numbers just don‘t get in Alexander’s head. It does not seem logical to him that you have to write “23” and not “twenty-three”.

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Dyscalculia Research Presented for Kids

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We’ve been happy to publish articles from both educators and researchers on this blog and hope with these to raise awareness of dyscalculia and provide support to teachers and parents. But what about information for kids?

Frontiers for Young Minds is an online collection of science articles aimed at children and one of these articles focuses on dyscalculia and the research around it: When your brain cannot do 2 + 2: a case of developmental dyscalculia.


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TEDx Talk: A Dyscalculic’s World

We have been fortunate to run several extremely informative guest posts here on the Dyscalculia Blog from educators and researchers on their work with dyscalculia. Today we would like to share a TEDx Talk we discovered on YouTube given by someone who is actually dyscalculic.

Line Rothman, a graduate of the creative business and design school Kaospilot in Aarhus, Denmark, takes her listeners on a tour of her “world without numbers” in a manner that is charming, touching, and enlightening all at once.


Helping Adults With Mathematical Learning Differences

Helping Adults With Mathematical Learning Differences

This week’s guest post from educator Sarah Jarvis covers a topic on which it can be difficult to find in-depth information: adult math learning differences. We are very pleased to feature Jarvis’s informative article on the Dyscalculia Blog!

I have worked at Bracknell and Wokingham College in the Learning Support Department for 8 years, supporting those aged over 16 who have maths learning differences.  I also taught GCSE and Functional Skills adult maths classes for a number of years.

The reasons that learners leave school at 16 or older without the requisite ‘C’ grade in maths can be numerous.  It is only by understanding the roots of what makes them struggle, as well as the person’s strengths, that it is possible to assist them to overcome these challenges.  Assessment is, therefore, an extremely important part of my job.

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Dyscalculia And The Brain

Dyscalculia And The Brain

We are very pleased to feature a guest post from PD Dr Karin Kucian, associate professor at the Centre for MR Research of the University Children’s Hospital of Zurich. In her article for the Dyscalculia Blog, Dr Kucian explores changes in brain function and brain anatomy and how these relate to developmental dyscalculia.

Evidence is growing that Developmental Dyscalculia (DD) is associated with various altera­tions in brain function and brain structure. Recent work in the field of DD has used brain-imaging techniques to study the brains of people performing a number of tasks. These techniques have allowed researchers to generate high-resolution images of participants’ brains, making it possible to observe brain activation patterns during number processing.

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Homeschooling with dyscalculia - read more on the Dyscalculia Blog

Homeschooling & Dyscalculia

Homeschooling takes a lot of commitment from parents.
Homeschooling requires a large commitment on the part of parents.

While some dyscalculics receive the support and intervention they need from their teachers and therapists, others struggle with their schools’ lack of resources or awareness. In the latter case, parents of dyscalculic children may consider homeschooling if this is a legal option where they live.

Homeschooling is a challenge and a commitment, but for some families, it offers an alternative way to educate their children when more traditional schooling methods are failing. The main drive for homeschooling parents across the board remains to offer their children the best learning experience they can provide.

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