Fun with Math

One thing I have read a lot about kids with FASD, is that they may have a concept down one day, and the next day totally lose the concept. You have to keep teaching them the same things over and over again, try to be patient and hope that one day it might stick. This is especially true in the area of math which almost all FASD kids struggle with completely.

Today Akila and I were doing her homework and we got to the math pages, which I hate. To be honest, I am a math hater by nature, probably because I stink at it. And I hate even more doing it with Akila. Lots of honesty here. Some of the sheets were adding up double digit numbers, not even ones that you have to do carry overs with. Pretty basic, she usually is pretty good at these, especially using a number chart. For whatever reason, she wanted no part of the number chart. OK. But for some reason, she could not do simple math facts, in her head or on her fingers. I'm talking about 1 plus 3, which she normally could at least do on her fingers. It was weird.

Then, she would ask me what 2 plus 4 is or something like that. I would say 4 plus 2 is 6 and she would wig out completely angry with me, because I said the 4 first, not the 2, like it was on the problem. I explained that in addition, it doesn't matter, but she would have nothing to do with it. I had to try to be more careful, so as to not upset her. I feel that is what I spend so much time doing. Thinking ahead as to how not to trigger something for her to fly into a goofy rage. It is very emotionally tiring.

She may be playing nicely in the family room and I am picking up and want to bring some stuff down there to put away. But if I go into the room, it may put her off track so I make a pile of stuff to go down there. Which is usually sitting there a week later. I have many piles in my house honestly because I have to be so thoughtful of where Akila is and what she is doing. I basically can't go upstairs after bedtime (until she is sleeping) because if she hears me on the steps, she is calling and has some goofy issue. Usually it is that she is bored and can't sleep.