aeh, you are bringing to mind some questions I've been long meaning to ask, if you don't mind sharing your wisdom a little further on some of the issues you raise above.
DD12 (dyslexic, inattentive ADHD, probably dysgraphic) has challenges in math, both in facts retrieval but also in grasping concepts, like what *is* multiplication or division, even when we worked on such things in a variety of hands-on and visual ways. She seems to have no number sense. For instance, in grade 5, given 48 divided by 12 and the choices of either (a) 44 or (b) 4, she didn't have the faintest awareness that 44 ought to be easily eliminated as a possibility.
She's been doing Jump Math for the last 2 years (yeah!) which is wonderfully clear and coherent and linear (and minimizes writing) and now does very well, but I worry she still lacks number sense and that larger conceptual understanding, even though she's become quite proficient with the procedurals. (For myself, I always found school math easy, including grade 13/ university calculus. Fell apart in physics, though - in retrospect, anything that required visualizing and problem-solving rather than simply applying known procedures. I'm still faster than DS in basic algebra/ computations - but he has the complex AoPS-type problems solved before I've even finished reading them, and it then takes 10 minutes and several whiteboards to get me to grasp what he's done, in his head).
I struggle with directions (I have to memorize everything like a list of facts, which I don't tend to retain well over time - there's no map in my head or picture of landmarks in their relative positions). DD, however, is in a whole other category: she can quite literally get lost walking around the block, and commonly steps out the door and heads off in the opposite direction as needed.
And yet - her block design at age 8 (old WISC, only VS score) was 98th. She also claims to be able to picture rich scenes in her head (if not rotate and manipulate objects like her brother/ father).
So I have long wondered how to understand/ assess the gaps/ support/ remediate this weird mix of strength and extreme holes in her VS and math skills, and to figure out what she will need as she heads soon to high school.
And finally, I am intrigued by your comment that poor VS correlates to challenges in written expression (my strength) - how does VS typically impact writing?
Thanks so much as always, oh font of all knowledge! And I hope you - and everyone - are finding much joy with their families these holidays.
