<p>I couldn't find the previous thread I was looking for, so starting a new one- sorry.</p>
<p>Both my d's and myself have learning disabilities that especially impact math performance and comprehension. Particulary of lower level computation.</p>
<p>I am able to use algebra with trig, in my landscaping classes, as long as I know what I am using it for- but give me a sheet of problems and I would choke. ( or actually I would be able to do it- but I couldn't tell you why or which problems were right)</p>
<p>Older D was a bio major @ Reed and got through calc & Ochem, although she retook precalc at a community college before Calc @ Reed.</p>
<p>Younger D is taking a year off, & passed pre-calc in high school, but when she took the math ( computerized) test , without accommodations at the community college yesterday, she placed into a level much lower than that.</p>
<p>( D#1 suspects that her sister had made the same mistake she had, started at a lower level math on the computer & was tired out quickly, D#1 later took the test with accommodations at a different college and was able to take pre-calc)</p>
<p>D#2 wants to major in science in college, but is terribly discouraged & stressed- and I was looking for recommendations of practice material or books on math phobia that she could look at that might help.</p>
<p>She has already been accepted at a couple colleges- and I am going to investigate their learning support programs- but I also didn't want her to go a year without doing any math- I had told her if she placed into a college level class through the community college- she wouldn't have to take a class- but I also don't want her to have to start lower than she needs to- but I feel like she needs to get through the barrier of " she can't do math" before she can even practice.</p>
<p>I think taking a community college math class is a good idea. They will give her a placement test to determine which level class she should take. You don't want her to take a higher level of math than she is ready for. Math builds cumulatively, so if she struggled with pre-calc in high school, and had all summer to forget what she learned, and hadn't mastered algebra and geometry, it's not surprising that she tested into a lower level. She could take advantage of the year off to take whatever math she needs to meet the graduatation requirements of the college she chooses. Maybe spring semester, or over the summer, she could take a math class that would transfer and meet the math requirement.</p>
<p>If she has a LD, she should use the accommodations. It's good that you're looking at the LD support programs at the colleges she's been accepted in. Perhaps she should retake the placement test, this time with whatever accommodations she will be getting.</p>
<p>I can relate to the frustrations with math requirements. My D has NVLD and barely squeaked through pre-cal with a C, and now does not want to take any more high school math. She's taking three languages though, so hopefully colleges will look at her strengths more than at the math weakness. The psychologist who tested her said that both the LD and her math anxiety are factors in her problems with math. I would have preferred D to take some sort of math this year, but she was so stressed and frustrated that I gave in, so she is mathless this year. She'll probably wind up taking a community college math class the summer before she goes to college. Also, there are some colleges that only have math requirements for certain majors. Maybe your D could look into that too. Good luck.</p>
<p>Based on her desires is math a problem in her science sourses? If yes take several math classes in the gap year and find a tutor who understands her LD. If math isn't a problem in her science courses go a little lighter on the classes and find a tutor who can upgrade her skills in problem solving and test taking.</p>
<p>All 4 of mine have a very specific LD issue that affects math in funny ways. It's a clerical processing issue that makes it seem like they do not know what they are doing. . They reverse numbers when writing them down, drift across a page and misalign numbers, getting the wrong answer,etc. It was frustrating until id'd. Through LD assistance we found that some simple mechanical things can help. Use graph paper for all calculations. Block off with blank paper or note cards all problems except the one being worked on. If necessary, block all but the numbers being read. Have problems reproduced so there are only 2 per page with a lot of white space around them. Preview by reading them out loud. BTW - they cannot take the tests on the computer. We went through the whole testing process so they could get some of those accommodations at school. </p>
<p>It was amazing how much those simple things helped.</p>