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Suggestions for the tutor?
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| PS121 |
Posted on March 01 2008 12:51 AM
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Member
Location: Louisiana
Posts: 3
Joined: 2008-03-01
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We have just found that my dear 15-y-o daughter has dyscalculia. I'd never even heard of it but she was so relieved to know that her problem has a name. Sophomore year, with algebra II and P.E., has been torture.
Now we're loooking for answers, have a tutor lined up to start on Monday, but she has never heard of this learning challenge either.
Any tips? Hints? Resources? Ideas? |
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| Rac |
Posted on March 01 2008 01:03 PM
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Member
Location: Manchester, England
Posts: 77
Joined: 2007-10-15
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Well my mum is a tutor and she sometimes works with dyscalculic children.
She often finds that many come to her already stressed with maths and so her first task is just to get them to open up. She does this by just being very calm and taking lots of time. The aim is to get the child to reaslise that they are not being rushed and that getting the answer wrong is ok.
She also has about 4 different kinds of biscuits that the child can choose from, and she uses these when the child is doing well in the lesson (not necessarily getting things right, but just for working hard and trying)
As for resources, she has counting cubes that can be stuck together, a giant educational clock with a large cog on the back to turn the hands, coloured pens and pencils, and any number of things to make maths more than just something on paper. It doesn't necessarily matter what age the child is, because all of these methods are a way of using different senses to learn. So anything that uses seeing, hearing(maths websites), touch(counting cubes) etc, is good because it varies things.
[url]www.topmarks.co.uk [/url]is a good site because you can enter the math problem(e.g. times tables) into the search engine, and it gives you interactive worksheets to do online.
It's also important to encourage the use of finger counting because some people think that it's wrong. But then you can take your fingers into an exam, and you can't take a resource sheet!
If you need any more info, message me.
Edited by Countess on March 03 2008 12:50 AM |
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| PS121 |
Posted on March 02 2008 09:58 PM
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Member
Location: Louisiana
Posts: 3
Joined: 2008-03-01
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Thank you so much for taking the time to reply. I have sent your very thoughtful and helpful suggestions to the tutor, and hope she takes them to heart. Let me know if you think of anything else! Tell your Mum I said "thanks" for raising a wonderful person!
Edited by PS121 on March 03 2008 02:47 AM |
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| dawn |
Posted on March 03 2008 09:50 PM
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Member
Location: england
Posts: 463
Joined: 2006-09-10
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Rac, thanks for the links. we played a game on topmarks and I was pleasantly surprised with how much my son could achieve- yes it took him a while to get the answers and I really do NOT understand how he worked one of the answers out ( his method made NO sense at all- but was right) but he said " easy " every so often and enjoyed himself. it was good for both of us.
Also rainforestmaths is a wonderful site- for year 1 to 6 with maths split into 4 components and great little puzzles to practice on- my son likes to go to the easier year levels so he can get them right but this is only revision so it is ok. also he as had a alok at what the older kids are doing and that shows a spark of curiosity . he also practices his own years maths level. I recommend it |
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