# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Scotland's education system is an inclusive one and is designed to make sure that every child and young person is entitled to support to enable them to gain as much as possible from the opportunities which Curriculum for Excellence provides.

The 2022 Scottish Working Definition of Dyscalculia has been collaboratively developed to provide education staff, partners, families and learners with a nationally agreed description of the range of indicators and associated difficulties of dyscalculia.

At all stages, dyscalculia is on a continuum varying from mild to severe, with a range of strengths and difficulties which are affected by the nature of the activity undertaken, the learning environment and any coping strategies and support in place. As a result, every individual with dyscalculia will differ in how they are affected and in the level of severity experienced.

There are however a common set of indicators that can be observed which are included within the working definition.

Identification and support

Receiving appropriate additional support is not dependent upon the formal identification of a specific need or label such as dyscalculia. However, this should not mean that schools and local authorities are not supportive of formally identifying additional support needs such as dyscalculia.

The identification of dyscalculia and the understanding of what it means can be extremely important to the learner's wellbeing and their family and this should not be underestimated.

The information gathered during the collaborative identification process is valued and forms part of the ongoing monitoring of the child or young person's progress and support within Curriculum for Excellence.

A range of templates have been developed to support the holistic, learner centred identification of dyscalculia. The templates can be downloaded from this page and adapted for local authority and school use.

The definition has been collaboratively developed by a short life working group with representation from:

The Scottish Government

Education Scotland

Association of Scottish Principal Education Psychologists (ASPEP)

Additional Support for Learning Officers (ASLO)

Dyslexia Scotland

Local authority specialist teachers and officers

Consultation with children and young people and a national parent forum also supported the development.

Improvement questions

How does my understanding of dyscalculia impact on my practice and how do I know?

How well am I supporting learners with dyscalculia?

How aware is our school community of dyscalculia and how do we know?

Download the resources
Scottish Working Definition of Dyscalculia (PDF 362 KB) Dyscalculia identification pathway 2023 (PDF 1.4 MB) Observation and Planning Tool April 2022 (Word 74 KB) Dyscalculia Establishing needs form 1 (Word 52 KB) Dyscalculia Establishing needs form 2 (Word 56 KB) Possible Indicators of Dyscalculia - Teacher Checklist (PDF 282 KB) Possible Indicators of Dyscalculia - Learner's Checklist (PDF 237 KB) PDF file: Possible Indicators of Dyscalculia - Parent/Carer Checklist (24KB) Collaborative Dyscalculia Assessment summary form 3 (Word 55 KB)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Education Scotland is a Scottish Government executive agency responsible for supporting quality and improvement in Scottish education.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Defining dyscalculia | Dyslexia Scotland

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
What is dyscalculia? Scotland publishes its definition.

# data[].attributes.body
Dyscalculia: Characteristics, Causes, and Treatments

# data[].attributes.body
Dyslexia & Dyscalculia

# data[].attributes.body
Daniel Ansari

# data[].attributes.body
Symptoms Explained

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Dyscalculia is a math learning disability that makes it hard to make sense of and work with numbers. Read about what dyscalculia means, symptoms, and how to help.

# data[].attributes.headline
Symbolic and nonsymbolic number comparison in children with and without dyscalculia

# data[].attributes.subject
Symbolic and nonsymbolic number comparison in children with and without dyscalculia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A 3 minute illustration of the concept of number sense by Professor Jo Boaler, in English and Spanish versions.

# data[].attributes.body
Daniel Ansari

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Ronit Bird's approach to teaching numeracy - and the idea that drives all her books - is that we should be teaching for understanding, in a hands-on and multisensory way, and not through rote-learning or memorised procedures. Working with concrete and highly visual materials, such as Cuisenaire rods, is an ideal way to explore numbers and the relationships between numbers in a way that enables children to discover facts for themselves and develop true conceptual understanding. Offering plenty of mathematical games is a good way of motivating children to spend time on those facts or topics that they need to practise, without their realising how much learning and reinforcement is happening as they play.

More about Ronit Bird

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Ronit Bird's approach to teaching numeracy - and the idea that drives all her books - is that we should be teaching for understanding, in a hands-on and multisensory way, and not through rote-learning or memorised procedures.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The Count On Races game, played by an adult and a child, helps children learn to count on mentally. A coin or a dice with 1 or 2 on each face is used. Children say the next number when counting on. For example, when starting from 7, for a jump of 2 we say '8,9'.

The Cube Model (4-6) and Cube Model Advanced (4-6) tasks, children recreate the models. This task develops visual-spatial skills and helps children to recognise two parts within the whole.

The Reasoning in Addition Puzzles get children thinking deeply about the value of different shapes. This Mathsbot link allows you to generate new reasoning in addition puzzles.

Visual Representations

This article explains the importance of children's finger discrimination skills and this article gives different ways in which fingers can be used. Here are some Finger Discrimination tasks by Youcubed.

These Base-5 and Base-10 Number Tracks are coloured to help children to see quantities within a number track.

This Online Base-5 Abacus by Math Rack represents quantities 10-100 using a base-5 colouring.

The Coloured 100-Squares help to identify patterns in the 100-square and can support children as they count in 2s and 5s.

The Teens & Tens Cards help children to discern between teen and tens numbers. The Place Value Sorting Task show different representations of teen numbers and challenge children to spot misconceptions.

Progression in Pattern

The Progression in Pattern guidance shows how children's understanding of repeating patterns can be built. The Grids for Repeating Patterns can be used as children look to create circular patterns with a fixed number of spaces.
Number Foundations Assessment Fluency in Calculation Within 20 Spatial Reasoning in Early Childhood, Early Childhood Maths Group
Deconstructing Word Questions KS1 Tasks and Build-Up Presentation

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A range of resources and games for building children's early number sense with small quantities and developing conceptual understanding.

# data[].attributes.headline
Dyscalculia podcast from Dyslexia Scotland & Education Scotland

# data[].attributes.subject
Dyscalculia podcast from Dyslexia Scotland & Education Scotland

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Fran Foreman and Iona Coutts give an insight to dyscalculia in Scotland's education system and explain how the working definition of dyscalculia can help to improve experiences for learners in Scottish schools.

With thanks to Dyslexia Scotland Podcast Volunteer David Thomson.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Dyscalculia in Scotland - Let's Talk Dyslexia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Fran Foreman and Iona Coutts give an insight to dyscalculia in Scotland's education system and explain how the working definition of dyscalculia can help to improve experiences for learners in Scottish schools.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Dyscalculia Network | Leading Support Network for Dyscalculia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Dyscalculia Network is a leading community interest company supporting individuals with Dyscalculia. Find a online tutor today.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Model and solve word problems using interactive tape diagrams.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Online manipulatives bring all of the learning and fun without the mess. Our math virtual manipulatives help students grasp abstract concepts through modeling. Literacy virtual manipulatives create a fun space for practicing spelling, rhyming, and more!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Virtual Manipulatives | Mathematical Modelling | Toy Theater

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Original teaching tools aimed at supporting teachers in the elementary school classroom. Two color counters, 3D dice, probability spinners, graph builders, fraction bars, base ten blocks, and more!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
Steve Wyborney's Blog: I'm on a Learning Mission.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Welcome to Splat! You are only moments away from a VERY POWERFUL, highly interactive number sense strategy that can be used at any grade level!

This post includes 50 (fifty!) free, downloadable PowerPoint math lessons!

Watch the video, download some (or all) of the lessons, and experience what happens when you unleash this resource in your classroom!

I've been excited to click the Publish button on this post for several weeks! It's time!
UPDATE: The Fraction Splat! Series (with 20 more downloadable lessons) is now available!
After reading this blog post, take a look at THE 12 MOST POPULAR MATH STRATEGIES AND DOWNLOADS ON THIS BLOG.

Splat Through 10
How many dots are under the Splat?

Splat Through 20
How many dots are under the Splat?

Multiple Splats
(Note: Splats that are the same color must cover the same number.)
Splat 3.1 - multiple splats Splat 3.2 - multiple splats Splat 3.3 - multiple splats Splat 3.4 - multiple splats Splat 3.5 - multiple splats
Instant Multiple Splat
(Note: An additional feature of this level is the opportunity to ask, "What could the total be?")

Splat 4.1 - Instant Multiple Splats Splat 4.2 - Instant Multiple Splats Splat 4.3 - Instant Multiple Splats Splat 4.4 - Instant Multiple Splats Splat 4.5 - Instant Multiple Splats
2-Color Splat
(Splats of different colors must have different values.)

Splat 5.1 2-color Splat Splat 5.2 2-color Splat Splat 5.3 2-color Splat Splat 5.4 2-color Splat Splat 5.5 2-color Splat Splat 6.2 Instant 2-color Splat Splat 6.3 Instant 2-color Splat Splat 6.4 Instant 2-color Splat Splat 6.5 Instant 2-color Splat
Instant 2-Variable Splat
(Splats of different colors must have different values. Splats of the same color must have the same value.)
Splat 7.1 Instant 2-variable Splat Splat 7.2 Instant 2-variable Splat Splat 7.3 Instant 2-variable Splat Splat 7.4 Instant 2-variable Splat Splat 7.5 Instant 2-variable Splat
Number Splat
(Note: Only the numbers circled on the screen may be used.)
Splat 8.1 - Number Splat Splat 8.2 - Number Splat Splat 8.3 - Number Splat Splat 8.4 - Number Splat Splat 8.5 - Number Splat Splat 9.1 - Instant Number Splat Splat 9.2 - Instant Number Splat Splat 9.3 - Instant Number Splat Splat 9.4 - Instant Number Splat Splat 9.5 - Instant Number Splat
Instant Number Splat with 2 Variables
(Note: Only the numbers circled on the screen may be used, and Splats of different colors must have different values.)
Splat 10.1 - Instant 2-Variable Number Splat Splat 10.2 - Instant 2-Variable Number Splat Splat 10.3 - Instant 2-Variable Number Splat Splat 10.4 - Instant 2-Variable Number Splat Splat 10.5 - Instant 2-Variable Number Splat
NOTE: I wrote each of these lessons using PowerPoint, so I recommend playing them in PowerPoint. If you do not have PowerPoint, you may want to download the PowerPoint viewer so that you can play the lessons.

UPDATE: The Fraction Splat! Series (with 20 more downloadable lessons) is now available!
Other Posts and Resources Which May Be of Interest Tiled Area Questions The Maze Hundreds Chart
Introducing Cube Connectors
Provide Massive Space to Notice
Primary Tile Questions
3 Powerful Tile Strategies (and 40 new downloadable pages)
Please take a moment to subscribe to the blog so you'll be notified each time new resources are posted!

I would treasure hearing about your experiences using Splat! to promote number sense in your classroom!

All my best,
Steve

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Splat! - Steve Wyborney's Blog: I'm on a Learning Mission.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Welcome to Splat! You are only moments away from a VERY POWERFUL, highly interactive number sense strategy that can be used at any grade level!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Dyscalculia diagnostic assessment — Steve Chinn

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
I would expect a full diagnostic assessment to include:
Pertinent background information (where available). For example, any information on IQ, school reports, a (maths) teacher report, text books used by the student, exercise books.:
Core skills, for example, subitising, place value, counting for…

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Scottish Assessment Summit: September 2019

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Overview of the Scottish Assessment Summit held on 11 September 2019.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Low Stakes Maths Tests: TES Maths Resource of the Week

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Effective questioning to support assessment in numeracy and mathematics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Education Scotland is a Scottish Government executive agency responsible for supporting quality and improvement in Scottish education.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A Number Talk is a brief, ongoing, daily routine that helps students develop computational fluency through the opportunity to share their thinking processes aloud. The Number Talk is a useful assessment tool to use to see if the concept being developed has been grasped by learners.

The East Ayrshire SAC Numeracy Team have delivered live and webinar CLPL sessions on the implementation of Number Talks within classroom practice. The following link will take you to the Teacher Guide, Implementation Plan, training PowerPoint, resources and associated tasks that have been collated, created and shared to support the development and implementation of the Number Talks approach.

Steve Wyborney's Splats

Splats are a great tool to engage learners in mathematical talk and link to the development of subitising and developing number sense in counting, addition subtraction and fractions. Check out the free PowerPoint lesson resources on Steve's blog. Click on the boxes below to access Steve's blog. Alternatively, click on this link to access the downloaded Splat resources.

The Fraction Splat! Series

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A Number Talk is a brief, ongoing, daily routine that helps students develop computational fluency through the opportunity to share their thinking processes aloud. The Number Talk is a useful assessment tool to use to see if the concept being developed has been grasped by learners.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
COPYRIGHT © NUMERICAL COGNITION LABORATORY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRIVACY POLICY
Submit the scores and compare the child's performance to a norm of Canadian children's scores from senior kindergarten through to grade 3

Administer the paper and pencil test and mark the scores

- Directed by Dr. Daniel Ansari, consisting of graduate students and post-doctoral fellows from the fields of Psychology, Neuroscience, and Education

- We aim to better understand what predicts success and failures in early math learning

- Focus of our research is to gain a better understanding of how children develop numerical and mathematical competencies

Tests are provided in PDF format

with detailed assembly instructions

A 2-4 minute test composed of two parts:

1. Symbolic (i.e. numerical digits)

2. Non-Symbolic (i.e. arrays of dots)

- Developed by Drs. Nadia Nosworthy & Daniel Ansari in the Numerical Cognition Laboratory at Western University

- Measures a child's ability to understand numerical magnitude (quantity)
- Correlations between performance on the Numeracy Screener and arithmetic skills have been demonstrated and published in scientific literature
- These findings show that performance on the Numeracy Screener can explain individual differences in children's arithmetic skills

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Numeracy Screener | Home | Numerical Cognition Laboratory

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Numerical Cognition Laboratory Numeracy Screener. A test that measures a child's ability to understand numerical magnitude. Supported by scientific research.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
If the thought of fractions or differential equations makes you break you out in a cold sweat, you are not alone. Maths anxiety - a negative emotional reaction to mathematics - is a global phenomenon, hampering maths achievement regardless of where people live, research has found.

It's not only a child's own maths anxiety that affects their performance but that of their peers: the largest and most culturally diverse study to date shows that in about half of countries, including England, the average level of maths anxiety within the same school or classroom predicts individual students' maths achievement, independently of their own anxiety levels.

"Having found that the emotional state of one's peer group may have an effect on children's maths achievement, it is important for teachers, parents and policymakers to not only be mindful of a child's own ability or emotional state, but the context in which they're studying," said Dr Nathan Lau, of the University of Western Ontario, who led the research.

Many people experience some degree of discomfort when confronted with a mathematical problem, ranging from mild tension to intense dread. Some people also experience physical symptoms such as a racing heart, sweating or feeling sick. Besides avoiding everyday situations involving numbers, people with such feelings may hold back from applying for promotions or pursuing careers in related subjects such as science, technology or engineering.

To better understand the contextual factors underpinning maths anxiety, Lau and colleagues analysed data from 1,175,515 students who participated in three large international studies of achievement. The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that students in countries with higher levels of maths anxiety tend to achieve lower maths grades.

The strongest predictor of maths anxiety was how competent students perceived their maths teacher to be: those with less confidence in their teacher tended to feel more anxious. Being set large amounts of maths homework, and parental involvement in homework, also contributed to anxiety to a lesser degree.

In about half of countries, it wasn't only the child's own level of maths anxiety that predicted their achievement but that of their peers. One factor appeared to be the cultural acceptance of uncertain situations.

"It seems like the more rigid or less accepting of uncertainty [a culture is], the lower this peer group effect is," Lau said. "We can't really say if there's a causal relationship, but one hypothesis is that teachers have a more organised way of teaching their materials [in such countries]. Possibly, children with maths anxiety prefer there to be fewer surprises, such as being called on to stand up and work out a question on a blackboard."

Prof Margaret Brown, the president of the Maths Anxiety Trust, said: "It shows for the first time that maths anxiety is not just an individual phenomenon which affects maths attainment, but it also strongly correlates with other contextual factors like the pupils' confidence in their teacher, teachers' own confidence in their maths, and the amount of homework and parental involvement in completing it.

"It is also significant that maths anxiety varies across different countries. England's results suggest that our secondary students are among the most seriously affected by maths anxiety, and that the effect of factors from both the school and home environment are particularly strong in England. This provides strong evidence that maths attainment in England could be improved by changing our mathematics curriculum, teaching styles and our examination system so that they cause less stress on students, teachers and parents."

Prof Denes Szucs, the deputy director of the University of Cambridge's Centre for Neuroscience in Education, said: "This study confirms some of the things we already knew about maths anxiety, but using a giant sample." His team recently interviewed 1,700 UK schoolchildren and found that a perception of maths being more difficult than other subjects often contributed to the problem. Teachers also played a role, with anxious children often reporting being confused by different teaching methods.

"The big question is what to do about it," Szucs said. On an individual level, he recommended trying to disentangle feelings of anxiety from ability. "Our UK research showed that most children who are maths anxious are not actually low achievers, they just feel anxious about maths. Possibly they picked it up from their family or school, but it is not necessarily a justified anxiety."

What is maths anxiety?

Mathematics anxiety is officially defined as "a feeling of tension and anxiety that interferes with the manipulation of numbers and the solving of mathematical problems in a wide variety of ordinary life and academic situations".

Extreme maths anxiety is thought to affect 2-6% of UK secondary school pupils, although estimates vary, with another study suggesting that a third of UK apprentices experience "noticeable" maths anxiety, while 19% have a tendency to be anxious but may not show such clear signs. Females tend to express more anxiety about maths than males, although studies have suggested this gender gap does not develop until adolescence.

It is separate to dyscalculia, a specific and persistent cognitive difficulty in understanding numbers, although sometimes the two conditions overlap.

Maths anxiety does not necessarily correlate with ability: A 2018 study found that 77% of children with high maths anxiety were normal to high achievers on curriculum maths tests. However, it can limit performance in certain situations and contexts. One possibility is that the worries and intrusive thoughts associated with maths anxiety disrupt or compete for cognitive resources that are needed to solve mathematical problems.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Teachers and too much homework contribute to maths anxiety - study

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Level of maths anxiety within same school or classroom found to predict individuals' maths achievement

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Professor Mahesh C. Sharma - Full Article (BDA Handbook 2022) - British Dyslexia Association

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Dyscalculia - Tips for Supporting Learners

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
SC102 (Updated 2023) Appendix 4a- Possible Indicators of Dyscalculia (Teacher Checklist)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
SC102 (Updated 2023) Appendix 4b- Possible Indicators of Dyscalculia (Learner Checklist)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
SC102 (Updated 2023) Appendix 4c- Possible Indicators of Dyscalculia (Parent-Carer Checklist)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The tasks in this feature use Cuisenaire rods to help learners visualise and explore the links to be made between proportionality, equivalence, comparison, difference and pattern. If you do not have physical rods, then our Cuisenaire environment will be a useful supplement.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The tasks in this feature use Cuisenaire rods to help learners visualise and explore the links to be made between proportionality, equivalence, comparison, difference and pattern.