Maths Skills

Poor maths skills can be caused by several underlying factors. Poor working memory or short term memory will make it very difficult to perform mental maths or learn, for example times tables. These problems are common in people who suffer with ADHD and dyslexia. Some people with learning difficulties can muddle up the orientation of numbers as well as letters and make easy mistakes when writing down numbers in the correct order or sequence.

Even poor reading skills can affect the ability to understand the meaning of maths questions, which can lead to further confusion and poor performance. Others struggle greatly with concepts such as decimals or fractions which is often the result of poor visual and spatial skills.

These problems can also occur in conjunction with dyspraxia or coordination disorder (DCD). When poor maths skills occur alone without any other learning difficulty this is usually referred to as dyscalculia (meaning difficulty (dys) with calculating (calculia)). It is not known what causes this specific disorder.

Many people with poor cerebellar efficiency have poor maths skills and most people who complete the Dore Programme get some improvements in maths skills.

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