Joe90
Phoenix
Joined: Feb 24, 2010
Posts: 8425
Location: Great Britain
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 Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 3:55 pm Post subject: I am worryingly bad at maths |
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I never used to be bothered about being so bad at maths, if there was a pill I could take what would improve one necessary skill I would take one that would improve my social skills because I have always felt isolated with the fact that my social skills are underaverage.
But lately I've become aware of my very poor maths (my math skills are actually worse than my social skills, a lot worse, so you can imagine how bad my maths is!) My dad has never been clever at anything at all, my mum often wonders if he has some learning delays/difficulties because he can't even spell his own name properly and he is hopeless at maths (he is not dyslexic or anything, he can read quick but is just severely bad at spelling). But yesterday he was looking at the phone bill and it said a lot of number things (excuse my poor vocab) on it like £11.67 then underneath £8.98 then underneath £9.08 then underneath £6.73 and so on, and I had phoned up a lot of them numbers so I said, ''oh my God, how much does that come to because I could give you the money for it?'' and it took him about 5-6 seconds to add those up in his head and he told me, and I was quite taken aback because that was the first time I had ever seen him add quite a big sum like that up in his head and tell me an answer. And then that made me think that I must be very poor at maths then, because I cannot add sums like that up in my head, without using my fingers. Even with my fingers I get all confused, I wish I had about 50 fingers then I'll be all right.
Also I'm obsessed with bus-drivers, and I want to try and work out their shift times, and to help me work it out I got a piece of paper, a pen, a clock, and 3 model buses. Working out bus-drivers shifts is more difficult than it sounds and requires a lot of logical thinking to work out, because when there's a bus that is every hour and it takes an hour to get from one end of the route to the other, you actually need 2 buses to run in the same hour, one to run from one end and one to run from the other end until they pass in the middle, plus they need an hour for their lunch aswell so you got to work out what time they finish to get back on the bus and who can cover their bus at what time, and it gets all confusing, and my mind seems to shut down. So I can't be a proper Aspie then if I can't even work out the logical part of my special interest!
Why am I so worryingly bad at maths? I'm even poorer than other people who are poor at maths. Is this a tiny form of dyslexia?
(I can read and spell though). Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious - see, I spelt that without using a spell-checker or copying from anywhere, I swear.
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From: East UK
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roccoslife
Toucan
Joined: Jul 13, 2011
Age: 29
Posts: 293
Location: Essex, UK
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 4:04 pm Post subject: |
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Pfft who needs maths skills, thats what calculators were invented for 
Im bad at it too though, it was always my worst subject. As long as you know enough to get by in life though your set. Maybe you could try getting one of those brain training games on your phone or something, They really do speed up your mental problem solving, well they did for me anyway. You just have to use them every day. Sudoku is good as well.
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SilkySifaka
Lemur
Joined: Apr 23, 2012
Age: 27
Posts: 1396
Location: UK
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 4:12 pm Post subject: |
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It could be that you have have something called 'dyscalculus' which is like dyslexia but with numbers.
I am also pretty awful at maths, and I couldn't have added up those numbers in my head. Sometimes I even make mistakes when I use a calculator. I couldn't even count out change correctly until I was 16 and I went to special classes for adults who lack basic skills. After that I was able to get a job in a shop and with daily practice I am now able to cash up a till if necessary. You might have something similar in your area, the ones in Scotland are called 'The Big Plus' but it is probably different in England. They are completely free and usually only have a few people in them and the teacher is used to working with people who are very under confident. It might just be that you need practise.
Despite my terrible maths I have managed to scrape by. Hilariously I once worked in a call centre for a pensions company. I only lasted six miserable months. I kept getting confused between my hundreds and thousands and giving people incorrect information (like telling someone they had £1,500 in their fund when it was actually £15,000!) |
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lostgirl1986
There's a party in my head.
Joined: Feb 29, 2012
Age: 26
Posts: 6339
Location: Ontario, Canada
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 4:14 pm Post subject: |
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| I'm really bad at math as well. I failed grade 10 math and I took workplace math in grade 11 and 12 instead of college math. I think I got a 32% in grade 10 math. I can't even do basic math. I count on my fingers and use a calculator. I think that's a big chunk of what stops me from getting customer service jobs, my poor math skills. If you have a learning disability in math it's called dyscalculia. That's what I have. Don't be ashamed, just stick with the things that you're good at instead. |
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FishStickNick
Phoenix
Joined: Apr 05, 2012
Posts: 964
Location: My own head
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 5:44 pm Post subject: |
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| It took me two years to comprehend long division. That just about sums up my ineptitude with mathematics. I still count on my fingers whereas most people my age can do it mentally. |
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Rascal77s
Picnic Basket Thief
Joined: Nov 13, 2011
Posts: 2351
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 5:44 pm Post subject: Re: I am worryingly bad at maths |
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| Joe90 wrote: | I never used to be bothered about being so bad at maths, if there was a pill I could take what would improve one necessary skill I would take one that would improve my social skills because I have always felt isolated with the fact that my social skills are underaverage.
But lately I've become aware of my very poor maths (my math skills are actually worse than my social skills, a lot worse, so you can imagine how bad my maths is!) My dad has never been clever at anything at all, my mum often wonders if he has some learning delays/difficulties because he can't even spell his own name properly and he is hopeless at maths (he is not dyslexic or anything, he can read quick but is just severely bad at spelling). But yesterday he was looking at the phone bill and it said a lot of number things (excuse my poor vocab) on it like £11.67 then underneath £8.98 then underneath £9.08 then underneath £6.73 and so on, and I had phoned up a lot of them numbers so I said, ''oh my God, how much does that come to because I could give you the money for it?'' and it took him about 5-6 seconds to add those up in his head and he told me, and I was quite taken aback because that was the first time I had ever seen him add quite a big sum like that up in his head and tell me an answer. And then that made me think that I must be very poor at maths then, because I cannot add sums like that up in my head, without using my fingers. Even with my fingers I get all confused, I wish I had about 50 fingers then I'll be all right.
Also I'm obsessed with bus-drivers, and I want to try and work out their shift times, and to help me work it out I got a piece of paper, a pen, a clock, and 3 model buses. Working out bus-drivers shifts is more difficult than it sounds and requires a lot of logical thinking to work out, because when there's a bus that is every hour and it takes an hour to get from one end of the route to the other, you actually need 2 buses to run in the same hour, one to run from one end and one to run from the other end until they pass in the middle, plus they need an hour for their lunch aswell so you got to work out what time they finish to get back on the bus and who can cover their bus at what time, and it gets all confusing, and my mind seems to shut down. So I can't be a proper Aspie then if I can't even work out the logical part of my special interest!
Why am I so worryingly bad at maths? I'm even poorer than other people who are poor at maths. Is this a tiny form of dyslexia?
(I can read and spell though). Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious - see, I spelt that without using a spell-checker or copying from anywhere, I swear. |
I would tend to agree with SilkySifka, you should get tested for dyscalcula. I am exactly like your father. I would probably be placed at 2nd or 3rd grade level for spelling but my arithmetic skills (and anything to do with numbers) are extremely good. I read very well but I can't spell words that I've been writing for decades. I will try to remember the correct spelling every time but when I have to write the word at a later time I won't be able to spell it. It is also very difficult for me to remember the names of people and places. I've traveled a lot but if I'm asked what sites I've been to I can only describe them because I won't remember the names. People think I'm lying about the places I've been because I can't remember the names, but then I describe the place in detail and they know I had to have been there, that's how bad it is.
Numbers on the other hand, no problem, I can look at a 16 digit credit card number and repeat it a week later without having thought about it since I looked at it. I have no idea what the name is of the condition your dad and I have, it seems the reverse of what you have, but I would recommend you get tested for dyscalcula. |
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Callista
Phoenix
Joined: Feb 04, 2006
Age: 30
Posts: 9935
Location: Central USA
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 5:52 pm Post subject: |
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You don't have to be good at numbers--you just have to have a way to deal with numbers when you meet them. So the guy on the phone can add those in his head--okay, fine. You can use a calculator. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter which you did.
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little_black_sheep
Snowy Owl
Joined: Aug 12, 2011
Posts: 125
Location: Up in Space
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 6:16 pm Post subject: |
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Although a very good student in generell, I have always been bad with numbers. I did not know that there is something like dyscalculia. Just looked it up and it fits me perfectly. 
- Deficit in subitizing (how can anyone know how many objects there are without counting them???)
- Frequent difficulties with arithmetic
- Difficulty with multiplication-tables, and subtraction-tables, addition tables, division tables, mental arithmetic, etc.
- Difficulty with conceptualizing time and judging the passing of time. May be chronically late or early (oh yes...)
- Particularly problems with differentiating between left and right (I just cannot do it. Ask my driving teacher  )
- Difficulty reading musical notation (I have to count the lines - everytime)
- Might do exceptionally well in a writing-related field (absolutely)
- Difficulty navigating or mentally "turning" the map to face the current direction rather than the common North=Top usage (I turn the map, because I cannot turn it in my head)
- Having particular difficulty mentally estimating the measurement of an object or distance (e.g., whether something is 10 or 20 feet (3 or 6 meters) away).
- Often unable to grasp and remember mathematical concepts, rules, formulae, and sequences
- Low latent inhibition, i.e., over-sensitivity to noise, smell, light and the inability to tune out, filtering unwanted information or impressions.
- Might have a well-developed sense of imagination due to this (possibly as cognitive compensation to mathematical-numeric deficits)
- Mistaken recollection of names. Poor name/face retrieval. May substitute names beginning with same letter.
Interesting to know! Thank you!
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ooOoOoOAnaOoOoOoo
Rasta is about freedom and the living God
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Joined: Jun 19, 2008
Posts: 7998
Location: Babylon
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 6:24 pm Post subject: |
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I have dyscalculia to a certain degree but when I really study on my own, I can do pretty good on certain math tests. My relationship with math is complex. Sometimes I can do alright, but I am not consistently good at Algebra.
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Ganondox
Visceral Diety
Joined: Oct 08, 2011
Age: 17
Posts: 3615
Location: Indonesia
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 6:32 pm Post subject: |
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I'm better at abstract, complex math than arithmetic. It's really annoying when people think I'm great at multiplying numbers together in my head just because I've already finished 2 years of calculus.
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Tyazii
Yellow-bellied Woodpecker
Joined: Dec 29, 2011
Posts: 61
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 8:06 pm Post subject: |
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| I'm good at algebra, trigonometry etc. but horrible at adding up. I just use the calculator for adding up. But once I know something in maths, I find it extremely easy. |
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Shellfish
Velociraptor
Joined: Nov 07, 2011
Posts: 425
Location: Melbourne, Australia
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 11:27 pm Post subject: |
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I am okay with basic maths (addition and subtraction etc) but when you add shapes and letters to the equation then you've lost me...I am terrible at it!
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jetbuilder
Phoenix
Joined: Feb 24, 2012
Age: 28
Posts: 749
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 11:56 pm Post subject: |
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