Knows her numbers one day, then doesn't...memory issues or not?

[momsuz123]

So, last week, my 6 y/o dd was doing her new Lollilop Logic book with me. She was writing 1-6 in the little box for the sequence of the pictures. She had no problem "knowing" which one went first and so on. She even pointed and quickly said out loud 1,2,3,4,5,6. Then she said, "oh, I forgot how to write 5 and 6". I showed her on her number line (in front of her), and she still wrote a 4. Then, I wrote a 5 lightly, and she traced it, same for 6. The next few pages she did better.

 

Question for you all. That has never happened to me before with her. For a split second I was like, "great, now she has a brain tumor". :001_huh:Then I snapped out of it.

I told her SLP today what happened. She said it could be a processing issue, just too much coming in. She commented on the days where seems don't seem to be good, just have a light learning day. On the days she is "getting it", have a bigger learning day.

Any advice? What are your thoughts?

Thanks. I just feel like I am really getting to know this dd, and her learning style. She is intermittent with how well she seems to "get" things. She even fooled her Kindy teacher last year, that she knew all her phonic sounds. Some days she does, then bam, she doesn't. What is that? Working memory issues? How do I help her? How do I teach her best?

Edited May 25, 2012 by momsuz123
added her age - oops

[Jpoy85]

C had this issue. She "forgot" how to count and how to write her numbers. It was frustrating. BUT..theres light at the end of the tunnel! We just kept working at it. Dh and I talked to her about it " We dont know that you know how to count, if you dont tell us". Now she can count to 30 and we are working on counting to 50.

 

It will just click and stick for your LO.

[chepyl]

My 4 year old can count to 10. I have heard her do it, but most of the time we get 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,11....I think we have stopped for too many icees at the 7eleven around tue corner ;)

 

She does the same with letters.

 

Occasionally my 6.5 year one will be writting and momentarily forget how to make a letter. I just point one out and we move on. I even forget how to make some cursive capital letters. If it starts happening more often, I would be concerned, but if it is just once in a while, it is probably fine.

 

Everyone forgets things from time to time.

[Lecka]

My son has a good concept of numbers but memorizing the names and how to write them is just rote memorization and as obvious and basic as it seems like it should be, it takes him a long time and a long time of on and off.

 

He was good with 1-10 but 11-15 were just something that he went back and forth on knowing for about 18 months (if not longer). He does know them now.

 

With him I don't think he has got processing issues. I think it just takes a long time for some of these things to truly get into his long-term memory, and even longer for them to become automatic.

 

I have noticed also that when something that has been tricky for him gets used in a new way, he takes 2 steps backwards. I think he incorporates the new knowledge and comes back stronger -- it just seems to be how he learns for some things.

 

I look at the "easy" things differently now. They are really "hard," and some "hard" things are really "easy" in my son's world, and now my world. It is what it is.

 

For practical purposes I think just some reminders or having a template, or reminding her how to use the number line and check her answer -- something like that. That is how my son is, anyway. So hard to tell if kids are alike or not sometimes!

[Walking-Iris]

I'm going to be honest and say I don't see the worry. My oldest at that age and younger still counted with some numbers out of order even though he knew how. It took him forever to remember how to make an 8. My 4 year old still asks me how to make a 5 even though he's been shown a million times.

 

I would consider it a good thing that they ask you for the reminder. Just keep practicing daily and don't make a big deal out of it unless you see some more severe issues. Sometimes numbers look different in various workbooks. Maybe she wrote a 4 when you pointed at 5 because maybe she thought you pointed at the 4 ---they are right next to each other.

[momsuz123]

Thanks all, the reason I was concerned, is that this was never a problem before. She has never had a problem with her numbers until now. Kind of weird, huh? Oh well, not to worry. I just wasn't sure if I should do any more than I am doing.

One thing I just thought about is this...we use to do "calendar time" every morning at our house. I stopped because I got the old "this is boring" routine too many times. In hindsight though, that repetition is probably what was helping things like number stick in her brain.

Hmmm.

Back to the drawing board to jazz up calendar time. I am thinking more and more she needs a lot of repetition.

What is making things even harder is that my first born dd, is on the gifted side, so she needs no repetition. So I don't know what is more "normal/average" for a 6 y/o.