Can babies walk? Surely, they can’t yet.

Do we have to help them walk by explaining how to? Surely, not. It’s innate.

But what about maths? Can babies count? Do we have to explain to kids what counting is, or is it innate?

A mother plays peek-a-boo with a baby. A baby can see a mother (one mother), and then suddenly – oops! There is no mother (Zero).

This looks strange to a baby (a video with more detail will be uploaded here soon) and a baby reacts… because they can see the difference between 0 and 1.

Counting is innate!

What Happens Next?

Kids learn to count up to 10 and often much higher. They remember the words and gradually get used to using them. Normally, no problems.

But

·        For how long does learning maths stay easy for kids?

·        It’s innate, so why do so many kids struggle with maths?

·        At what point can maths become an insurmountable obstacle?

I believe that kids’ struggle with Maths stems from a mathematically and psychologically incorrect maths teaching only. There is nothing wrong with students.

I personally have no doubt that maths can start disintegrating in kids’ heads as soon as they are taught to count. Let me show you why.

The Origin Brain-Twister

Traditionally, kids are taught to count starting from “1”. A young child is surrounded with the posters firmly printing this into their heads. Counting 1, 2, 3, 4,… becomes natural, but it dramatically reduces the chance for a child to naturally develop the correct maths thinking. Because…

Counting in maths starts from “Zero”.

Yes, babies do it right, but we, adults, send them into the wrong maths thinking as soon as we start counting with them!

It’s not easy to explain to a small child what “Zero” is. Consciously, kids will simply not get it (please see my disclaimer below). This is why I class this as a brain-twister. I call it “The Origin Brain-Twister” (in maths, “Zero” point on a number line is called an origin).

Many kids need help to overcome The Origin Brain-twister. If not overcome, this brain-twister makes maths start falling apart immediately. Without realising there is a “Zero”, negative numbers become simply impossible to (consciously) understand and some kids simply do not manage to intuitively overcome this obstacle (I couldn’t! My parents had to help me).

A child presses on learning despite negative numbers being not properly understood. Everything looks OK on the surface, but frustration has now set in.

New topics come up, frustration affects confidence, learning becomes less efficient. A child grows to believe that maths is just gobbledygook. The chances of understanding fractions drop dramatically and then maths learning disintegrates well before “real maths” (algebra) even begins!

Maths now becomes somewhat like torture (I believe that learning abstract gobbledygook by heart, with no understanding, is a mental torture) and, sooner or later, learning maths simply crashes.

And what makes things worse, it’s hard for a teacher to spot where the problem really lies. A teacher would not normally have much time in a lesson and would try to help a child with “what’s on the surface” (with the current topic), instead of “digging into a child’s brain” to see what brain-twister exactly is the culprit!

How can you help your child?

First and foremost, check your child realises that counting (in maths) starts from Zero, not 1. Two videos (one for 3+ year olds and another one for older children –they will be loaded here soon) demonstrate how one can help a child overcome The Origin Brain-twister.

And then – keep watching your child! This is only one brain-twister to overcome. There are about 350++ brain twisters to follow! And if just only one brain-twister has not been properly overcome, maths stops making sense and that’s it – CRASH.

If you sense your child struggles with maths, do not delay! Get them help.

How can I help your child?

I shall be writing about all 350++ brain-twisters that I have discovered. I shall share with you how I am spotting them in my students’ heads and how I help every child overcome them in my lessons. I hope this will help you. Meanwhile, you may consider arranging private lessons for your child.

I personally can help kids from about 6 to 18+ years old, and adults. I give 1-2-1 private lessons online worldwide (I stopped teaching face-2-face temporarily because of COVID). Also, please ask me about my maths forum for students.

💜 Need help with maths?
💜 I invite you to take a taster session
💜 DM or phone me to discuss and arrange

DISCLAIMER

Everything I write (here and will write in the future) about, every my claim about how kids learn maths is based on:-

🟣 My own maths learning experience, starting from when I was a young child of about 4/5 years old. Maths is in my blood and, luckily, I remember how my parents helped me with maths. I remember their words, what I felt hearing them. I remember my experiences of overcoming many brain-twisters (amazing, but yes, I remember), thinking, comparing and digesting what parents and teachers said.

🟣 My study into psychology, educational psychology, neuroscience, pedagogics – all with a goal to understand how young kids learn in general and learn maths in particular (e.g. research by Jean Piaget, Prof. H. Ginsburg “Big Maths for Little Kids”, A.K. Zvonkin “Math from Three to Seven” and much more).

🟣 My own experience of spotting and fixing brain-twisters in my students’ brains.

My observations are supported by science and have led to what I now call my #MorrishMaths tuition system.

I am confident in my maths teaching methods. They work practically for all my students (see testimonials). And – remember? I give 100% money back guarantee.