← Atlas of Difficulties
S-25
The child can't find their way around a sheet of paper: mixes up rows and place values
Type: practognostic
What the research says
Visual perception and spatial orientation make it possible to learn the written shapes of letters and digits and to master numerical symbols. Impaired spatial perception makes math tasks harder to do.
Lalaeva R.I. Dyscalculia in Children, p. 9 (2005)
In primary acalculia, damage to the parieto-occipital areas results in impaired perception of spatial relationships and orientation in space.
Lalaeva R.I. Dyscalculia in Children, p. 17 (2005)
Intervention work is aimed at developing visual-motor coordination, forming spatial concepts, and orientation in the space of the page. Developing manual skills — precise, coordinated hand and finger movements — is part of dyscalculia intervention.
Lalaeva R.I. Dyscalculia in Children, pp. 27–32 (2005)
Exercises at home — free
Graph paper dictation
Builds: Orientation on the page — right/left, top/bottom
You need: a graph paper notebook, a pencil
- Put a dot on the page — this is the start. The child puts the pencil on the dot.
- Dictate a route: “Three squares to the right, two down, one to the left, three up.”
- The child draws the path along the squares without lifting the pencil.
- Compare it with the correct version — draw the right route next to it.
- Harder: the child dictates the route and the adult draws it — then you compare.
Lalaeva R.I. Dyscalculia in Children, 2005, ch. 4
Finish the row
Builds: Orientation on the page, visual-motor coordination, understanding a pattern
You need: a sheet of graph paper, a pencil
- At the start of a row, draw 3–4 repeating elements: circle-square-circle-square.
- Say: “There's a rule here. Continue the row to the end.”
- The child continues the pattern, keeping the size and placement the same.
- Pay attention: the shapes should be the same size and the same distance apart.
- Harder: three elements in the pattern, then alternating big-small.
Lalaeva R.I. Dyscalculia in Children, 2005, pp. 112–114
Draw it bigger and smaller
Builds: Controlling size, judging size by eye
You need: a sheet of paper, a pencil
- On the left side of the page, draw a medium-sized shape: a 3×3 cm square.
- Say: “Draw one just like it, but bigger” — the child draws it alongside.
- Say: “Now one just like it, but smaller” — the child draws it on the other side.
- Compare the three squares: “Which is the biggest? The smallest?”
- Repeat with a triangle, a circle, a rhombus.
Lalaeva R.I. Dyscalculia in Children, 2005, p. 114
Worksheets — print and practice
Patterns on a grid
↓ Download printable PDF (in Russian)Unfinished geometric shapes
↓ Download printable PDF (in Russian)A house with windows — top/bottom, left/right
↓ Download printable PDF (in Russian)Without help
- When adding in columns, digits end up in the wrong place-value columns — the answer is wrong
- Skips squares, “drifts” off the line — the notebook turns into chaos
- Can't draw a line segment or make a table