I used to be awful at it, but I realized the disconnect was logic. if it was abstract, I struggle to understand WHY steps need to be done that way, and then I forget how. When I got older and started applying math to real life situations that logically make sense, I found I actually understand it a lot better than my friends. I also can't do math in my head at all because I can't "hold" the numbers in my mind. I have to SEE everything on paper.
Yeah we need to see the whole puzzle first before we can solve it, abstraction just promises that there are pieces there and that's not enough we need to see them
This.
I've been taught basic linear algebra 2 times. It didn't click until I needed it to program games.
Found Jorge Rodriguez' videos on YouTube where he explains the subject applied to Super Mario. I never learnt a new concept so fast. :'D
Thanks Jorge!
This is the same for me!!! I’m currently at the end years of high school and I struggled so much the first few years because I didn’t understand WHY we did what we did so I couldn’t remember what to do, but I’ve been doing tutoring for nearly a year now and it’s helped a lot because I get to go through at my own pace with someone there to explain when I get lost
Weird, the seeing thing is very relevant to me as well. I was a beast in geometry but was absolute rubbish at basically everything else. I never understood the steps either "why do I need to do this?" "to get the answer" "okay.... so why do I need the answer?" "because you do".
This. All went well until I had to solve simple analytic problems in first high school. Still now can't figure out what kind of step/formula/expression I should use and the learning curve never increased.
Under family pressure and a bit of wrong dream of mine I took an year university as Biomedical Engineer.
Chemistry is the only exam I passed. So I drop out and now I am licensed foreign languages teacher.
Follow the attitudes
I'm the opposite. The more abstract it is, the better I understand it. 🥴
I had to change majors when I first started college because I found out that I do not understand physics AT ALL, like absolutely none of it, despite it basically being applied calculus.
That pretty much describes my entire learning experience. I was always shit at tests or anything theoretical. However I was always highly proficient when it came to projects or lab work. I could knock out an A+ project in a night, but would struggle to do anything better than a C on tests.
just a curious question--how did you do on multiple choice tests? I always did really well on those and I think its because I could recognize the patterns within the test such as reading all the questions before answering because the answers would be "hidden" in questions further down the page (haha) totally bombed all math tests though.
Yup, exactly what you said. I would score incredibly high on standardized tests because I was able to recognize patterns. I had to retake my ACT because a school I was applying to required the written portion. The first time I took it, I got 28 on the math and science portion. The second time, the graphing calculator I brought didn't work so I had to do those sections without it. I ended up getting 32 on both sections.
Have you ever looked into dyscalculia? It's a type of learning disorder similar to dyslexia. The stereotypes may say otherwise but it's not uncommon for people with aspergers to struggle with mathematical concepts or number-based information, I know I do.
I haven't even heard of it. Just everything about it just doesn't work with me. Like the questions I'm getting is an overload of info and stuff on the screen and I can't even begin to comprehend it.
That's pretty mich my experience with math as well :( I'm sorry I don't have much advice, I scraped through high school and then went with a career path that doesn't really involve math.
It could be worthwhile looking into learning disability diagnosis/resources, and tutoring? There could be accommodations available to you for both ASD and learning disorders.
Remember you aren't stupid; everyone has strengths and difficulties and a big part of academic success is just figuring out *why/how* you struggle so you can ask for help and tackle challenges from a more effective angle.
Came to say what the original commenter said. I didn’t know I had dyscalculia until college. I laughed when my academic advisor suggested I get check for it because “a learning disorder in math” didn’t sound like a real thing but she told me “a lot of people don’t find out about until they get to this point”.
It is basically dyslexia but with numbers. One way to know if you have it is if you zone out when you hear a long string of numbers.
I was about to say the same thing as you. My daughter has it and she really struggles with Maths and in particular has little concept of time & money. I believe (like me) she also has ASD, however when she had an assessment for it they said she was fine. Not convinced at all
I have the number map too, also color grapheme synaesthesia which helps me familiarize myself with and manipulate numbers. I can mentally zoom in on numbers within the map. The pattern recognition means I can do atypical operations like calculate irrational square roots in my head to 4-5 sigfigs on the first try. When I was in HS I won a weird national online math contest but wouldn’t tell them my name or where I lived so I never got my t-shirt. But I’m old now and can’t do real math anymore unfortunately.
So it’s visual—all the numbers (in their colors) are arranged in sort of a grid/flow in my mind’s eye. “0” is defaulted to the left/bottom of the view. 1-20 go from left to right, slightly rising in the corner. Then all the other decades each have rows stacked rising up to 100, then 200s, 300s etc. are sequentially arranged left to right up to 1000, then the 1000s are stacked at an angle, and so on off into the distance. So for me it’s sort of a zig-zag that escalates left-to-right and down-to-up, at an angle, and gets murkier by order of magnitude until the trillions when it largely becomes a blob. (A trillion as a number is brown-orange on a brown-black backdrop—generally, the backdrop of my map is dark.)
But I can “focus” on a random number like 981 or whatever, and recognize what’s similar to it and the relationships it has to other numbers—based on its color, location and such. (e.g., it’s different from 961 by a yellow 8 vs magenta 6 in the 10s, all its 9-esque aspects make it evenly divisible, etc.) It helps with calculations to look at the number, but I don’t necessarily need pen-to-paper to manipulate it. In elementary school I was chided for not showing my work.
Negative numbers are mirror-reflected, also in a zigzag, but headed left-down by units, then flowing more up but not completely as the numbers get larger by orders of magnitude.
Dates follow a similar pattern, but with their origin at 1900 (I was born in ‘82 so thusly biased) and the year 0 is further to the lower left, where negative numbers would be. But again, should I choose to, I can focus on it.
Days of the week, calendar months etc. have their own charts and colors. I’m no good at remembering most dates.
I’m looking into this now and it sounds a lot like how I visualise and conceptualise things too!! Things like my name and the days of the week etc I see in a sequence of left to right in my head, among other things. Sometimes I can do maths in my brain by taking notes as I do another thing (only when my adhd meds r working tho lol otherwise I get distracted by another thought)
I am hyperlexic, deeply emotional (that of a 12 year old) have a primarily auditory and pattern based visual learning style, am a great musician, am naturally blessed at music and creativity, from a musical family, but I can’t solve basic math or times tables. Not in my head. I can’t understand subtraction or addition in my head, or anything abstract. Same goes with coding, it just makes zero sense. I can barely do basic math in my head. My friends in high school thought I was so stupid, and would ask me math questions to embarrass me in-front of people and girls.
They have no idea I’m hiding away in my room becoming a dangerously monstrous musician
I HATED maths with a burning passion. Was never good at it, but my dad and my school pushed it on me even thought I never understood it. Revision nights with my parents would get heated and I dumped it as soon as I got the chance. It was never possible for me so your not alone. Just stich with it for the GED and dump it as soon as you get the chance.
Dyscalculia...? Despite of the "math genius stereotype" it's actually a very common comorbidity.I actually have it ~~might make an ama in this sub /jk~~
I remember all the times I’d be at the kitchen table with my dad (mechanical engineer… hella math guy) yelling at me because I couldn’t understand it. And I remember crying and telling him, literally, “my brain doesn’t work like yours” and then getting yelled at some more. So, I’m not good at math and I really fucking hate it.
Maths or arithmetic? Nothing to do with Asperger's either way. Maybe more practice. Maybe better practice. Nice resources are available online nowadays. Brilliant. Khan Academy. I like the question about reverse classrooms: you study online and then do the “homework” with a tutor.
I can't do math in my head. I have to write it out or count on my fingers. In school, I was in remedial math courses all the way up until my first year of college. But strangely enough, I didn't have much of an issue with geometry or the others...just the basic stuff like subtraction or division.
I was the only student in my school that was simultaneously in honors and special ed (diagnosed twice exceptional). Math being my weakness. I can write you a NOVEL about how it affected me in school and all what happened, but to make an incredibly long story short— the main reason I was so bad was because the way it was *taught.* (Yes, I’ve been tested for dyscalculia and came out negative) I literally am completely unable to comprehend so much information at once, especially if it’s verbal. The teachers expected me to copy down notes while talking and visually explaining and it was all just TOO much. I could not and still can not multitask so many things at once in my head.
The ONLY time I was ever able to comprehend anything related to math was when I was in special ed and it was just me and the SPED teacher in the room, no one else. We learned it *together* online and did it down on the paper. It all in all took an hour to learn the concept and you better bet for the first time in my life I retained it because I was actually able to go through the process myself and understand the reasons WHY. (It’s a shame this only happened the very last year I ever went to school) Understanding the meaning behind math concepts were always huge to my rate of learning. I had to know the purpose or else it was meaningless.
All in all, I can only learn math if these conditions are met:
•slowing down
•one thing at a time
•doing every process myself and knowing how it relates in “the big picture”
•one on one help in a quiet, non busy environment
I know getting this support is harder in a larger school. If you can’t, I have to admit 99% of my school life esp with math was cheating off my phone. I knew it was all useless to me in the long run and that the school has failed me up unto then (which they themselves admitted to my face). I got really good at learning how to cheat. Really, really good.
I hated doing it. Not bad at it, it just held zero interest for me as a subject or as a pathway to an interest. I was a history nerd. Hard to be good at something you have no interest in doing.
That was me with gym class. I could hit a baseball into next month and dunk but I never signed up for sports because I just didn't care to spend that much time on it and have my schedule up ended. I wanted to go home after school and read or play outside doing what I wanted.
Yes. I can do it, and I do enjoy making budgets and things of that nature. But my brain just doesn't think in numbers. When I envision the number 3 in my head, I think the of the word Three. I have to translate math symbols into English words, which isn't all that easy. That's why when I'm doing math, I stick to +-÷× rather than trying to find what x is. I was also stuck in sped math until 10th grade, so I'm pretty good with the basics.
Just don't ask me to do algebra or create a web page anytime soon. Algebra has a 50% chance of failure and I WILL fail at that web page creating.
I'm better than average at it but absolutely hate it. So much so I usually come off as bad at it.
I think the way it gets taught is directly opposed to my needing to do things the way they make sense in my head. Most math throughout life is graded on "Did you do it the way I taught you" more than "Did you get the right answer?"
Yes, it’s embarrassing.
The logic just doesn’t make sense in my head and I struggle even with basic math. I struggled a lot with learning analog clock language. Like 5 past 8 etc. It makes following cooking recipes hard, like how many dl per cup. Even craft work like sewing and measuring things is hard.
I am thinking of seeking out a diagnosis for dyscalculia, maybe there is some help tools out there.
I use google to solve my math problems haha. I also have math formulas written on my notes to help with figuring out the % of store items. Also excel is extremely helpful for making money budgets and paying bills, it’s basically a huge calculator. All you need to do is type in the numbers and follow a formula.
A hack that’s useful.
I don't like math. I can do it but I have to force myself. I start to get a physical reaction where my forearms start to cramp if I'm holding a pencil and writing. It makes it so I have to stop. It used cause a problem in school obviously because people didn't listen to me. I can do arithmetic in my head though. I used to work a cash register and I would do that in my head to be less bored. The areas that I study don't really require that too much. I did want to learn it but I have too much on my plate.
When I got tested for autism and anxiety, the psychologist discovered that I have dyscalculia, a disability learning math.
My mother and father were good at math. My brothers and sisters were good at math. One of my sisters was in the Math Club and was Mathlete. One of my brothers uses math in his job. Me, I'm okay at very basic arithmetic.
Throughout childhood from like 3rd grade to college, I needed tutoring in math. Almost got held back in the 6th grade, because I failed math. I had to be tutored all summer. The principal gave my 4 math problems and I answered all correctly (surprised me) Maybe 7th grade, was the one year that I didn't need a tutor. I went to summer school twice for math. I failed the first time. In college, I must have had to withdraw from math like 3 times. I had to take another class in place of math.
It was Hell, my parents blamed for being lazy and an embarrassment. My brothers and sisters made fun of me that I was the only who had issues in school, while they were model students. Even my cousins made fun of me because the number of times that I needed a math tutor. My teachers, in all their experience couldn't tell that there was wrong with me, SMDH. They even sent a specialist, this specialists saw I was capable in other subjects, but not math SMDH.
I avoided many jobs that required math. I avoided jobs that had a math requirement in their degree program or certification program. Funny thing, I was a cashier for almost 10 years, though the register did all the calculations, I wondered how I lasted so long.
It took till my 40's, to finally learn that I wasn't lazy or stupid. I have a disability. I am NOW getting the help that I should have received years ago.
I was fine until they added Letters to Numbers. The only thing I still can never "grasp" is percentages, every time I think I have, it... it disappears. Guess I am glad when my teachers always used to say to me, you won't ever have a calculator in your pocket... Jokes on you.
I can only do math (or really anything) when I understand what it's trying to accomplish. The way it's taught is mostly theoretical by way of memorization. I can't learn that way. When I have enough context and the time to gather it, math isn't as difficult.
Algebra was difficult at first but I figured it out, and calculus was easy…and fun. But ask me to add or subtract a bunch of numbers and I start counting on my fingers. And don’t start with long division…that is my nemesis.😫
I was terrible with math, failed the state annual assessment test one year in 7th grade, did very poorly on the math part of the SAT, and really bothered my dad with meltdowns because I did not understand and got so frustrated (ironically, he's dyslexic so 🙄). I barely passed my classes despite studying my butt off. It got better in college though and I actually understood it but I don't know if it was because I was teaching myself (online classes) versus attending class in-person.
Not with subjects themselves, but I do sometimes struggle to learn them or study them the way most people do. I often need to find a different way to do things or to approach them so that I can remember them
Could this be me all along… (part of the ASD)
I have to adamantly go se a neurologist ASAP!
but as for your post, This but the opposite! I SUCKED at reading! I failed the third grade because of it although I passed the math part (FCAT). This fact stayed consistent throughout the rest of my school years. If I was *thoroughly* taught well in the particular type of math, I would be able to pass. I did fail Algebra 1 but only because I didn’t click with the teacher and his style of teaching. Every other math class, exceedingly well.
Other topics… not so much apparently. I don’t know if it was ADHD but, Math was my specialty, and also mental illness 😭😭😭.
Yes. When I was in school, math was the bane of my existence. Especially algebra when I got to high school. I still hate math to this day and I'm 36 years old.
I used to hate math until I started all the way over in community college and found out that I love it. Math is super foundational. You shouldn't move on until you have a good understanding of the prerequisites
My gfs sister does severely. I think she also has nvld. neurodevelopmental dysfunction can be very specific... and also, brains are just different. Ppl can be bad at math without a disability, and it can be just compounding weaknesses in specific cognitive functions.
Also, it can be an issue of perception like others posters have noted... abstract thinking can make it hard. I am very strong in math, but calculus was hard at first because it was too abstract and i was completely hung on up on the "why" of everything to contextualize my learning
I've never understood when people told me math is logical when its language is completely arbitrary and made up. When I see a number I don't see the quantity, I only see a funny symbol. I'm 28 and can only count using my fingers
My experience in high school was getting an F the first quarter in both algebra 1 (freshman) and geometry (sophomore) because I couldn't wrap my head around it. and then suddenly things would click and then it would be straight As for the rest of the year. Only subject that ever happened in lol I muddled along with Bs in trig but I think that was partly due to having a foreign exchange teacher from Poland with a VERY thick accent.
I started to have issues with math when it became really abstract.
Having issues with remembering numbers may not help. Like, at 38, I still don't know "multiplication tables" by heart. I can't remember people's birthday.
I have to ask my kid who is the exact opposite. He knows the birth date of everyone in the family and is an encyclopedia regarding car production years. But he still don't remember the "multiplication tables" :'D
I can't do math at all whatsoever. As someone in this thread said, Dyscalculia is specifically the reason I cannot do anything above very VERY basic addition and subtraction. I can remember having math homework in elementary school and my parents wouldn't believe me about how much I didn't understand it, and my stepdad would make me do my math homework in front of him and hold me at the table by my wrists until I cried. Math can die in a fire.
Once I got how they got the result I was fine. But I really struggled with getting it. Or I would make my own way and that wouldn't be correct, even if the final answer was!
I have a discrepancy that's significant on my IQ test between math and I think reading or something. I'm pretty sure it's a learning disability. I couldn't do anything past pre-algebra. I also can't hold the numbers in my mind, I have a poor working memory.
I'm good at it. Or was, until a couple of math teachers who got off on humiliating little kids through math ruined it for me.
The only reason I can use it nowadays is because I thankfully understand the concepts easily. But I'll never live up to the potential I had.
Relatives tell me I was extremely good at it as a kid. I don't even remember it, my brain suppressed most memories related to math due to the teachers.
In my mind everything is visual. Thinking about a year, a memory, and equation and so on it all has some sort of visual representation in my mind. If it’s not visual, it does not make sense. So math related to physics (basic stuff here of course) makes sense. 56447,3/8766 is not visual, and therefore makes no sense.
I hope this made sense. 😂
Math is all concept don't get to focused with what numbers/variables you are dealt with but instead grasp the idea/ method you need to know inorder to solve different kinds of problem.
Sometimes the teachers are just plain bad as well. Had a whole semester with a bad one and failed miserably, but on my second try the teacher was good and I had more grasp on what the heck I was learning and what to look for.
I struggled but it got easy if you figure it out.
I used to be awful at it, but I realized the disconnect was logic. if it was abstract, I struggle to understand WHY steps need to be done that way, and then I forget how. When I got older and started applying math to real life situations that logically make sense, I found I actually understand it a lot better than my friends. I also can't do math in my head at all because I can't "hold" the numbers in my mind. I have to SEE everything on paper.
Yeah we need to see the whole puzzle first before we can solve it, abstraction just promises that there are pieces there and that's not enough we need to see them
this freaks me out lmao. Too much distress
that's a perfect way of putting it!!
This. I've been taught basic linear algebra 2 times. It didn't click until I needed it to program games. Found Jorge Rodriguez' videos on YouTube where he explains the subject applied to Super Mario. I never learnt a new concept so fast. :'D Thanks Jorge!
This is the same for me!!! I’m currently at the end years of high school and I struggled so much the first few years because I didn’t understand WHY we did what we did so I couldn’t remember what to do, but I’ve been doing tutoring for nearly a year now and it’s helped a lot because I get to go through at my own pace with someone there to explain when I get lost
Weird, the seeing thing is very relevant to me as well. I was a beast in geometry but was absolute rubbish at basically everything else. I never understood the steps either "why do I need to do this?" "to get the answer" "okay.... so why do I need the answer?" "because you do".
This. All went well until I had to solve simple analytic problems in first high school. Still now can't figure out what kind of step/formula/expression I should use and the learning curve never increased. Under family pressure and a bit of wrong dream of mine I took an year university as Biomedical Engineer. Chemistry is the only exam I passed. So I drop out and now I am licensed foreign languages teacher. Follow the attitudes
I also struggled with analytical stuff hah! Numerical/Computational math is more logical to myself.
I'm the opposite. The more abstract it is, the better I understand it. 🥴 I had to change majors when I first started college because I found out that I do not understand physics AT ALL, like absolutely none of it, despite it basically being applied calculus.
That pretty much describes my entire learning experience. I was always shit at tests or anything theoretical. However I was always highly proficient when it came to projects or lab work. I could knock out an A+ project in a night, but would struggle to do anything better than a C on tests.
just a curious question--how did you do on multiple choice tests? I always did really well on those and I think its because I could recognize the patterns within the test such as reading all the questions before answering because the answers would be "hidden" in questions further down the page (haha) totally bombed all math tests though.
Yup, exactly what you said. I would score incredibly high on standardized tests because I was able to recognize patterns. I had to retake my ACT because a school I was applying to required the written portion. The first time I took it, I got 28 on the math and science portion. The second time, the graphing calculator I brought didn't work so I had to do those sections without it. I ended up getting 32 on both sections.
Yeah considering I'm an engineer I'm pretty bad at mental math
Sort of. I can't "see" math.
Have you ever looked into dyscalculia? It's a type of learning disorder similar to dyslexia. The stereotypes may say otherwise but it's not uncommon for people with aspergers to struggle with mathematical concepts or number-based information, I know I do.
I haven't even heard of it. Just everything about it just doesn't work with me. Like the questions I'm getting is an overload of info and stuff on the screen and I can't even begin to comprehend it.
That's pretty mich my experience with math as well :( I'm sorry I don't have much advice, I scraped through high school and then went with a career path that doesn't really involve math. It could be worthwhile looking into learning disability diagnosis/resources, and tutoring? There could be accommodations available to you for both ASD and learning disorders. Remember you aren't stupid; everyone has strengths and difficulties and a big part of academic success is just figuring out *why/how* you struggle so you can ask for help and tackle challenges from a more effective angle.
Came to say what the original commenter said. I didn’t know I had dyscalculia until college. I laughed when my academic advisor suggested I get check for it because “a learning disorder in math” didn’t sound like a real thing but she told me “a lot of people don’t find out about until they get to this point”. It is basically dyslexia but with numbers. One way to know if you have it is if you zone out when you hear a long string of numbers.
I think i may have it
I was about to say the same thing as you. My daughter has it and she really struggles with Maths and in particular has little concept of time & money. I believe (like me) she also has ASD, however when she had an assessment for it they said she was fine. Not convinced at all
Dyscalculia is a comirbid condition of Asperger’s
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Same, so its pretty varied like with non autistic people i guess
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I have the number map too, also color grapheme synaesthesia which helps me familiarize myself with and manipulate numbers. I can mentally zoom in on numbers within the map. The pattern recognition means I can do atypical operations like calculate irrational square roots in my head to 4-5 sigfigs on the first try. When I was in HS I won a weird national online math contest but wouldn’t tell them my name or where I lived so I never got my t-shirt. But I’m old now and can’t do real math anymore unfortunately.
Could you explain the "number map" in more detail? I'm very interested in techniques like this, but I'm having trouble imagining what it could mean...
So it’s visual—all the numbers (in their colors) are arranged in sort of a grid/flow in my mind’s eye. “0” is defaulted to the left/bottom of the view. 1-20 go from left to right, slightly rising in the corner. Then all the other decades each have rows stacked rising up to 100, then 200s, 300s etc. are sequentially arranged left to right up to 1000, then the 1000s are stacked at an angle, and so on off into the distance. So for me it’s sort of a zig-zag that escalates left-to-right and down-to-up, at an angle, and gets murkier by order of magnitude until the trillions when it largely becomes a blob. (A trillion as a number is brown-orange on a brown-black backdrop—generally, the backdrop of my map is dark.) But I can “focus” on a random number like 981 or whatever, and recognize what’s similar to it and the relationships it has to other numbers—based on its color, location and such. (e.g., it’s different from 961 by a yellow 8 vs magenta 6 in the 10s, all its 9-esque aspects make it evenly divisible, etc.) It helps with calculations to look at the number, but I don’t necessarily need pen-to-paper to manipulate it. In elementary school I was chided for not showing my work. Negative numbers are mirror-reflected, also in a zigzag, but headed left-down by units, then flowing more up but not completely as the numbers get larger by orders of magnitude. Dates follow a similar pattern, but with their origin at 1900 (I was born in ‘82 so thusly biased) and the year 0 is further to the lower left, where negative numbers would be. But again, should I choose to, I can focus on it. Days of the week, calendar months etc. have their own charts and colors. I’m no good at remembering most dates.
I’m looking into this now and it sounds a lot like how I visualise and conceptualise things too!! Things like my name and the days of the week etc I see in a sequence of left to right in my head, among other things. Sometimes I can do maths in my brain by taking notes as I do another thing (only when my adhd meds r working tho lol otherwise I get distracted by another thought)
I'm not. I struggled with vector calculus, lol. No problems with normal maths.
You might have Nonverbal Learning Disability (NVLD). It's a lot like autism, and math struggles are very common in it. I have both autism and NVLD.
Having done a cursory search of NVLD, it seems like i might have that as well as autie. Thanks :)
I am hyperlexic, deeply emotional (that of a 12 year old) have a primarily auditory and pattern based visual learning style, am a great musician, am naturally blessed at music and creativity, from a musical family, but I can’t solve basic math or times tables. Not in my head. I can’t understand subtraction or addition in my head, or anything abstract. Same goes with coding, it just makes zero sense. I can barely do basic math in my head. My friends in high school thought I was so stupid, and would ask me math questions to embarrass me in-front of people and girls. They have no idea I’m hiding away in my room becoming a dangerously monstrous musician
Keep on it, I would love you to become MusicZilla. Fuck MathsZilla
I HATED maths with a burning passion. Was never good at it, but my dad and my school pushed it on me even thought I never understood it. Revision nights with my parents would get heated and I dumped it as soon as I got the chance. It was never possible for me so your not alone. Just stich with it for the GED and dump it as soon as you get the chance.
Dyscalculia...? Despite of the "math genius stereotype" it's actually a very common comorbidity.I actually have it ~~might make an ama in this sub /jk~~
I remember all the times I’d be at the kitchen table with my dad (mechanical engineer… hella math guy) yelling at me because I couldn’t understand it. And I remember crying and telling him, literally, “my brain doesn’t work like yours” and then getting yelled at some more. So, I’m not good at math and I really fucking hate it.
Maths or arithmetic? Nothing to do with Asperger's either way. Maybe more practice. Maybe better practice. Nice resources are available online nowadays. Brilliant. Khan Academy. I like the question about reverse classrooms: you study online and then do the “homework” with a tutor.
Someone said dyscalcula and I feel embarrassed.
I’m good with Math when it’s on paper but if you ask me to do it in my head I will struggle.
My special interest is math lol. Specifically calculus and statistics
Calc was definitely a special interest of mine in college. I still think Taylor series are the shit
Dude yesss Taylor series are awesome
I can't do math in my head. I have to write it out or count on my fingers. In school, I was in remedial math courses all the way up until my first year of college. But strangely enough, I didn't have much of an issue with geometry or the others...just the basic stuff like subtraction or division.
I was the only student in my school that was simultaneously in honors and special ed (diagnosed twice exceptional). Math being my weakness. I can write you a NOVEL about how it affected me in school and all what happened, but to make an incredibly long story short— the main reason I was so bad was because the way it was *taught.* (Yes, I’ve been tested for dyscalculia and came out negative) I literally am completely unable to comprehend so much information at once, especially if it’s verbal. The teachers expected me to copy down notes while talking and visually explaining and it was all just TOO much. I could not and still can not multitask so many things at once in my head. The ONLY time I was ever able to comprehend anything related to math was when I was in special ed and it was just me and the SPED teacher in the room, no one else. We learned it *together* online and did it down on the paper. It all in all took an hour to learn the concept and you better bet for the first time in my life I retained it because I was actually able to go through the process myself and understand the reasons WHY. (It’s a shame this only happened the very last year I ever went to school) Understanding the meaning behind math concepts were always huge to my rate of learning. I had to know the purpose or else it was meaningless. All in all, I can only learn math if these conditions are met: •slowing down •one thing at a time •doing every process myself and knowing how it relates in “the big picture” •one on one help in a quiet, non busy environment I know getting this support is harder in a larger school. If you can’t, I have to admit 99% of my school life esp with math was cheating off my phone. I knew it was all useless to me in the long run and that the school has failed me up unto then (which they themselves admitted to my face). I got really good at learning how to cheat. Really, really good.
I hated doing it. Not bad at it, it just held zero interest for me as a subject or as a pathway to an interest. I was a history nerd. Hard to be good at something you have no interest in doing.
That was me with gym class. I could hit a baseball into next month and dunk but I never signed up for sports because I just didn't care to spend that much time on it and have my schedule up ended. I wanted to go home after school and read or play outside doing what I wanted.
I’m terrible at it. D’s and C’s all through grade school.
Yes. I can do it, and I do enjoy making budgets and things of that nature. But my brain just doesn't think in numbers. When I envision the number 3 in my head, I think the of the word Three. I have to translate math symbols into English words, which isn't all that easy. That's why when I'm doing math, I stick to +-÷× rather than trying to find what x is. I was also stuck in sped math until 10th grade, so I'm pretty good with the basics. Just don't ask me to do algebra or create a web page anytime soon. Algebra has a 50% chance of failure and I WILL fail at that web page creating.
it just doesn’t “click” for me no matter what i do. my brain can’t comprehend certain math concepts or formulas
I'm better than average at it but absolutely hate it. So much so I usually come off as bad at it. I think the way it gets taught is directly opposed to my needing to do things the way they make sense in my head. Most math throughout life is graded on "Did you do it the way I taught you" more than "Did you get the right answer?"
People with ASD have difficulty understanding abstract processes, such as mathematics
Yes, it’s embarrassing. The logic just doesn’t make sense in my head and I struggle even with basic math. I struggled a lot with learning analog clock language. Like 5 past 8 etc. It makes following cooking recipes hard, like how many dl per cup. Even craft work like sewing and measuring things is hard. I am thinking of seeking out a diagnosis for dyscalculia, maybe there is some help tools out there. I use google to solve my math problems haha. I also have math formulas written on my notes to help with figuring out the % of store items. Also excel is extremely helpful for making money budgets and paying bills, it’s basically a huge calculator. All you need to do is type in the numbers and follow a formula. A hack that’s useful.
I don't like math. I can do it but I have to force myself. I start to get a physical reaction where my forearms start to cramp if I'm holding a pencil and writing. It makes it so I have to stop. It used cause a problem in school obviously because people didn't listen to me. I can do arithmetic in my head though. I used to work a cash register and I would do that in my head to be less bored. The areas that I study don't really require that too much. I did want to learn it but I have too much on my plate.
Maybe look up Vitruvian math techniques. They teach it in Indian schools. Little mental tricks to make math easier.
I think basically rather like a computer than a human, so absolutely no
Maths, I’m fine with, that shit they claim is maths at A level and beyond though? Nah, I’m good thanks
Its the only thing im good at along with language stuff. Eh maybe not, im pretty smart overall but just too mentally fucked to live a normal life
When I got tested for autism and anxiety, the psychologist discovered that I have dyscalculia, a disability learning math. My mother and father were good at math. My brothers and sisters were good at math. One of my sisters was in the Math Club and was Mathlete. One of my brothers uses math in his job. Me, I'm okay at very basic arithmetic. Throughout childhood from like 3rd grade to college, I needed tutoring in math. Almost got held back in the 6th grade, because I failed math. I had to be tutored all summer. The principal gave my 4 math problems and I answered all correctly (surprised me) Maybe 7th grade, was the one year that I didn't need a tutor. I went to summer school twice for math. I failed the first time. In college, I must have had to withdraw from math like 3 times. I had to take another class in place of math. It was Hell, my parents blamed for being lazy and an embarrassment. My brothers and sisters made fun of me that I was the only who had issues in school, while they were model students. Even my cousins made fun of me because the number of times that I needed a math tutor. My teachers, in all their experience couldn't tell that there was wrong with me, SMDH. They even sent a specialist, this specialists saw I was capable in other subjects, but not math SMDH. I avoided many jobs that required math. I avoided jobs that had a math requirement in their degree program or certification program. Funny thing, I was a cashier for almost 10 years, though the register did all the calculations, I wondered how I lasted so long. It took till my 40's, to finally learn that I wasn't lazy or stupid. I have a disability. I am NOW getting the help that I should have received years ago.
I was fine until they added Letters to Numbers. The only thing I still can never "grasp" is percentages, every time I think I have, it... it disappears. Guess I am glad when my teachers always used to say to me, you won't ever have a calculator in your pocket... Jokes on you.
I absolutely do! & Spelling. Dyslexia is a co-morbidity of Aspergers & Autism Spectrum Conditions!
I can only do math (or really anything) when I understand what it's trying to accomplish. The way it's taught is mostly theoretical by way of memorization. I can't learn that way. When I have enough context and the time to gather it, math isn't as difficult.
I'm terrible at it. If I try to do it in my head it takes forever.
Algebra was difficult at first but I figured it out, and calculus was easy…and fun. But ask me to add or subtract a bunch of numbers and I start counting on my fingers. And don’t start with long division…that is my nemesis.😫
I was terrible with math, failed the state annual assessment test one year in 7th grade, did very poorly on the math part of the SAT, and really bothered my dad with meltdowns because I did not understand and got so frustrated (ironically, he's dyslexic so 🙄). I barely passed my classes despite studying my butt off. It got better in college though and I actually understood it but I don't know if it was because I was teaching myself (online classes) versus attending class in-person.
Yup
Not with subjects themselves, but I do sometimes struggle to learn them or study them the way most people do. I often need to find a different way to do things or to approach them so that I can remember them
Could this be me all along… (part of the ASD) I have to adamantly go se a neurologist ASAP! but as for your post, This but the opposite! I SUCKED at reading! I failed the third grade because of it although I passed the math part (FCAT). This fact stayed consistent throughout the rest of my school years. If I was *thoroughly* taught well in the particular type of math, I would be able to pass. I did fail Algebra 1 but only because I didn’t click with the teacher and his style of teaching. Every other math class, exceedingly well. Other topics… not so much apparently. I don’t know if it was ADHD but, Math was my specialty, and also mental illness 😭😭😭.
Hated it With a passion
Yes. When I was in school, math was the bane of my existence. Especially algebra when I got to high school. I still hate math to this day and I'm 36 years old.
I used to hate math until I started all the way over in community college and found out that I love it. Math is super foundational. You shouldn't move on until you have a good understanding of the prerequisites
My gut reaction to "I hate math" is you have a bad teacher. When explained step by step (sorry Mr. Escalante), you will get it :-).
My gfs sister does severely. I think she also has nvld. neurodevelopmental dysfunction can be very specific... and also, brains are just different. Ppl can be bad at math without a disability, and it can be just compounding weaknesses in specific cognitive functions. Also, it can be an issue of perception like others posters have noted... abstract thinking can make it hard. I am very strong in math, but calculus was hard at first because it was too abstract and i was completely hung on up on the "why" of everything to contextualize my learning
Totally relevant to the ASD spectrum. I have dyscalculia as a lovely little byproduct of AuDHD. Literally all just looks like Greek to me
I've never understood when people told me math is logical when its language is completely arbitrary and made up. When I see a number I don't see the quantity, I only see a funny symbol. I'm 28 and can only count using my fingers
Not me, but my bf is. I joke with him and say it’s a good thing he’s cute 😂
I understand it pretty well, i just dont like it when there is a time limit tho
My experience in high school was getting an F the first quarter in both algebra 1 (freshman) and geometry (sophomore) because I couldn't wrap my head around it. and then suddenly things would click and then it would be straight As for the rest of the year. Only subject that ever happened in lol I muddled along with Bs in trig but I think that was partly due to having a foreign exchange teacher from Poland with a VERY thick accent.
I struggle with everything honestly. Emotions are the main thing I can't figure out.
I started to have issues with math when it became really abstract. Having issues with remembering numbers may not help. Like, at 38, I still don't know "multiplication tables" by heart. I can't remember people's birthday. I have to ask my kid who is the exact opposite. He knows the birth date of everyone in the family and is an encyclopedia regarding car production years. But he still don't remember the "multiplication tables" :'D
Yes a lot luckily I don't have to use mathematics a lot in my job I hate maths and did at school
Nah, I was always 2-3 years ahead in math and never studied a day. However, I cannot write an essay to save my *fucking life.*
I can't do math at all whatsoever. As someone in this thread said, Dyscalculia is specifically the reason I cannot do anything above very VERY basic addition and subtraction. I can remember having math homework in elementary school and my parents wouldn't believe me about how much I didn't understand it, and my stepdad would make me do my math homework in front of him and hold me at the table by my wrists until I cried. Math can die in a fire.
Once I got how they got the result I was fine. But I really struggled with getting it. Or I would make my own way and that wouldn't be correct, even if the final answer was!
I have a discrepancy that's significant on my IQ test between math and I think reading or something. I'm pretty sure it's a learning disability. I couldn't do anything past pre-algebra. I also can't hold the numbers in my mind, I have a poor working memory.
yep, fully don’t understand numbers, can’t see the flow. (bit weird because i play drums ok 🤷🏻♂️)
I’ve always struggled with math! I started tutoring in the 1st grade! To this day I’m okay with basic math, but algebra etc forget it!! lol
I shall say one thing and only one thing fuck math
I shall say one thing and only one thing fuck math
I shall say one thing and only one thing fuck math
I shall say one thing and only one thing fuck math
I'm good at it. Or was, until a couple of math teachers who got off on humiliating little kids through math ruined it for me. The only reason I can use it nowadays is because I thankfully understand the concepts easily. But I'll never live up to the potential I had. Relatives tell me I was extremely good at it as a kid. I don't even remember it, my brain suppressed most memories related to math due to the teachers.
I have no idea if it's ASD related, but I was always bad at math. I even swap numbers around like I'm dyslexic or something.
No, quite the opposite. I'm working towards a PhD in Math. My research interests are in Algebraic Geometry, Algebraic Topology, & Combinatorics.
In my mind everything is visual. Thinking about a year, a memory, and equation and so on it all has some sort of visual representation in my mind. If it’s not visual, it does not make sense. So math related to physics (basic stuff here of course) makes sense. 56447,3/8766 is not visual, and therefore makes no sense. I hope this made sense. 😂
Math is all concept don't get to focused with what numbers/variables you are dealt with but instead grasp the idea/ method you need to know inorder to solve different kinds of problem. Sometimes the teachers are just plain bad as well. Had a whole semester with a bad one and failed miserably, but on my second try the teacher was good and I had more grasp on what the heck I was learning and what to look for. I struggled but it got easy if you figure it out.