--- title: "Inclusive Maths: ADHD & Dyslexia | Times Tables Games | XTables Champions" description: "SENCOs are ditching timed maths tests in 2026. Discover inclusive EdTech strategies and SEN-friendly times tables tools that actually work for ADHD and dyslexic learners." lang: en json-ld: | [ { "name": "XTables Champions", "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "WebSite", "url": "https://xtableschampions.com" }, { "name": "XTables Champions", "logo": "https://qtrypzzcjebvfcihiynt.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/base44-prod/public/68cac2c61c34894625d63273/cae3abbca_logo.png", "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Organization", "url": "https://xtableschampions.com" }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://math-magicians-academy-25d63273.base44.app/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "inclusive maths classroom adhd dyslexia times tables", "item": "https://math-magicians-academy-25d63273.base44.app/inclusive-maths-classroom-adhd-dyslexia-times-tables" } ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "Why are timed maths tests harmful for children with ADHD?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "For children with ADHD, a countdown timer creates an immediate spike in anxiety that floods working memory before a single calculation is attempted. Because ADHD affects attention regulation and processing speed, the pressure of a ticking clock actively interferes with mathematical thinking rather than measuring it. Removing the timer does not lower the standard. It removes an unnecessary barrier that was never assessing what we think it was assessing." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What makes a maths tool genuinely dyslexia-friendly?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "A genuinely dyslexia-friendly maths tool presents information visually, avoids relying on dense symbolic notation without context, and gives learners a way to see the relationship between numbers rather than just memorise answers. Error responses matter enormously: a tool that explains why the answer is what it is, using a visual breakdown, is far more supportive than one that simply marks a response wrong and moves on." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What should a SENCO look for in inclusive EdTech for maths?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "A SENCO should look at three things above all. First, whether the core mechanic of the tool is built around engagement and understanding or around speed and pressure. Second, how the tool handles errors, and whether it provides visual or conceptual support in that moment. Third, what data the tool surfaces, and whether it flags patterns of avoidance or anxiety rather than just raw scores." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How does XTables Champions support children with ADHD specifically?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "XTables Champions uses multiplayer games that children find genuinely engaging, including Snap, Connect Four, and Battleship, so that times tables repetition happens naturally inside play rather than through pressurised drills. There are no countdown timers. The format reduces the cognitive load associated with test anxiety, allowing children with ADHD to focus on the game while the maths practice happens in the background." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the Show Me How™ feature and how does it help SEN learners?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Show Me How™ is a visual breakdown feature that activates when a child gets a multiplication wrong. Rather than simply showing the correct answer, it breaks down how the multiplication works using visual representation. For children with dyslexia or dyscalculia, this transforms a moment of getting something wrong into a genuine learning moment, and reinforces conceptual understanding rather than surface-level recall." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How does XTables Champions help SENCOs track pupil progress?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "XTables Champions includes a SENCO analytics dashboard that surfaces patterns worth investigating, including which multiplication tables a child is consistently avoiding, not just which ones they are scoring below average on. Avoidance is often one of the earliest signals of maths anxiety or an unidentified learning difficulty, so having that data visible to a SENCO earlier makes a real difference." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Is XTables Champions suitable for use across a whole school, including mainstream classes?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Yes. While the SENCO-specific features were built with SEN learners in mind, the game-based format and low-pressure design benefit a wider range of learners in any classroom. Children without a formal diagnosis who experience maths anxiety or low confidence respond well to the same features that support children with ADHD, dyslexia, or dyscalculia. Schools and MATs exploring whole-school maths provision often find this breadth useful." } } ] } ] --- [ XTables Champions Part of the ESSTA Kids family ](/Welcome) [About Us](/About)[Rewards ](/OurRewards) Tips & Tricks [Games](/Games)Login [ XTables Champions Part of the ESSTA Kids family ](/Welcome) [Learn](/levels-and-progression) [Games](/GamesOverview) [All Games](/GamesOverview)[Connect Four](/connect-four)[Guess Who?](/guess-who)[Times Tables Bingo](/times-tables-bingo)[Snap!](/snap)[Play with Friends](/games/play-with-friends)[Play against Champion](/games/play-against-champion) [Every Learner](/times-tables-for-every-learner) [Adaptive Learning](/adaptive-times-tables-learning) [Schools](/ForSchools) [Lunchtime Clubs](/LunchtimeClubs)[SENCO Support](/SchoolSencoInfo)[Homework Setting](/SchoolHomeworkSetting)[Whole-Class Games](/SchoolWholeClassGames)[Level Matching](/SchoolLevelMatching) [Wellbeing](/wellbeing-and-safeguarding) [Pricing](/pricing) Log In / Sign Up [Back to all articles](/Blog) # Inclusive Maths: ADHD & Dyslexia | Times Tables Games 23 July 2026 The countdown timer has no place in a truly inclusive maths classroom. That is my honest conclusion after spending time reading the latest thinking from SENCO networks and SEN teacher training providers heading into 2026, and speaking to schools in our early conversations at XTables Champions. The message coming through clearly is this: legacy maths software built around timed drills is not just unhelpful for children with ADHD, dyslexia, or dyscalculia. In many cases, it is actively making things worse. This is not a niche concern any more. It has become one of the most pressing questions SENCOs across the UK are trying to answer right now. ## What Is Shifting in SEN EdTech Right Now What I keep seeing in conversations with educators and in the wider SEN teacher training space is that neurodiversity awareness has genuinely matured. Schools are no longer satisfied with bolting an "accessibility" toggle onto software that was fundamentally designed for neurotypical learners. SENCOs are scrutinising the core design of tools, asking whether the product was built with SEN learners in mind from the start, or whether inclusion was added as an afterthought. Timed tests are the clearest flashpoint. When I looked into this, the reasoning is straightforward: a countdown timer does not measure mathematical understanding. For a child with ADHD, it floods the working memory with anxiety before a single calculation is attempted. For a child with dyslexia, rapid visual processing of numbers under pressure compounds the difficulty. For a child with dyscalculia, it reinforces the belief that maths is something they will always be too slow for. The timer is not a neutral feature. It is a design choice, and it has consequences. **The schools moving fastest on this are not waiting for a policy mandate. They are making the switch now, at SENCO level, because they can see the harm in front of them.** ## Why Timed Tests Disproportionately Affect Students with ADHD Children with ADHD often have strong mathematical intuition. The problem is that the traditional "rapid recall" model of times tables practice was never designed for how their brains work. Attention regulation, working memory, and processing speed are all areas where ADHD creates real challenges, and a timed test hits all three at once. What works far better, from everything I have read and from the early feedback we are getting from schools, is low-stakes repetition embedded inside something that already holds a child's attention. When a child is genuinely engaged in a game, the repetition happens naturally. They are not sitting there dreading the next question. They are trying to win at Snap. This is the logic behind how XTables Champions works. The games, whether that is multiplayer Snap, Connect Four, or Battleship, are built so that times tables fluency develops as a byproduct of play. The child's focus is on the game. The maths is happening anyway. ## Using Visual Breakdowns to Support Dyslexic Learners For children with dyslexia, the challenge in maths is often less about numeracy itself and more about the way information is presented. Dense columns of numbers, abstract equations with no visual anchor, and rapid-fire questions that assume fluent symbol recognition all create unnecessary barriers. Visual support is not a workaround. It is good teaching. When I looked at how SENCOs are approaching this, the consistent ask is for tools that show the relationship between numbers, not just the answer. A child who can see why 6 times 7 equals 42, through a visual array or a structured breakdown, is building genuine understanding rather than fragile surface recall. This is exactly what our Show Me How™ feature is designed to do. Rather than simply presenting the correct answer after a wrong guess, Show Me How™ gives the child a visual breakdown of how that multiplication actually works. It is a small feature, but in our early conversations with schools, it is one of the things SENCOs respond to most warmly. It shifts the moment of getting something wrong from a source of shame into a moment of actual learning. ## The SENCO's Guide to Choosing Inclusive EdTech If you are a SENCO evaluating maths tools for your school, here is the honest checklist I would apply based on what I have been reading and hearing. First, look at the core mechanic. Is the product built around speed and pressure, or around engagement and understanding? If the default experience involves a ticking clock, that is a design philosophy, not just a feature. Second, ask how the tool responds to errors. Does it just mark something wrong and move on, or does it provide a visual or conceptual explanation? For SEN learners, the moment after a mistake is one of the highest-value teaching moments available. Third, check what data the tool surfaces for you. A good SENCO dashboard should help you spot which children are avoiding certain question types, not just which ones are scoring below average. Avoidance is often the earliest signal of anxiety or a specific learning difficulty. At XTables Champions, we have built SENCO flags directly into the analytics dashboard so that patterns worth investigating surface automatically. We are a young company and we will be honest about that, but this feature exists precisely because of conversations we have had with SENCOs who told us their biggest frustration was not knowing which children needed support until they had fallen significantly behind. As our founder Gal Darrash puts it, "We built this because we kept hearing from parents and teachers that the existing tools were making children feel stupid. That is not a maths problem. That is a design problem." ## This Matters for Multi-Academy Trusts Too For MATs considering inclusive EdTech at scale, the SENCO conversation is increasingly also a whole-school strategy conversation. Schools within a trust that adopt genuinely inclusive maths tools are not just supporting their SEN pupils. They are reducing low-level anxiety across a broader cohort, because the features that help a child with ADHD (low pressure, engaging format, visual support) are also features that help children without a formal diagnosis who simply find traditional drill-and-kill stressful. In our early conversations with schools in the UK, including those exploring provision for both mainstream and resourced provision settings, the interest in tools that work across the full range of learners in a classroom is significant. ## Talk to Us About Supporting Your SEN Learners If you are a SENCO, a class teacher, or a school leader looking at your times tables provision for children with ADHD, dyslexia, or dyscalculia, I would genuinely encourage you to get in touch with us at XTables Champions. We are not going to oversell what we do. We are a founder-led EdTech company at an early stage, and we are actively learning from the schools we work with. But we have built Show Me How™ visual breakdowns, a SENCO analytics dashboard, and a game-based format specifically because we believe SEN learners deserve maths tools that were designed for them, not adapted around them. Visit [xtableschampions.com](https://xtableschampions.com) or reach out directly to arrange a conversation about how XTables Champions can support your pupils. If you are a SENCO, a SEN lead within a MAT, or a teacher supporting children with maths anxiety, we would genuinely love to hear from you. ## Frequently Asked Questions Why are timed maths tests harmful for children with ADHD? What makes a maths tool genuinely dyslexia-friendly? What should a SENCO look for in inclusive EdTech for maths? How does XTables Champions support children with ADHD specifically? What is the Show Me How™ feature and how does it help SEN learners? How does XTables Champions help SENCOs track pupil progress? Is XTables Champions suitable for use across a whole school, including mainstream classes? ## Ready to help your child? Join thousands of families using XTables Champions to make multiplication click. Get Started Free XTables Champions Game-based times tables for children aged 6 to 11. No timers, no tears. For parents, schools and tutors. Part of ESSTA Kids. #### Platform - [Schools](/ForSchools) - [Levels & Progression](/levels-and-progression) - [Our Programme](/Programme) - [Rewards](/OurRewards) - [Pricing](/pricing) - [About Us](/About) - [Learning Philosophy](/LearningPhilosophy) - [Contact](/Contact) #### Community - [Insights](/Insights) - [For Parents Blog](/Blog) - [Tips & Tricks](/TipsTricks) - [Success Stories](/SuccessStories) - [Events & Competitions](/Events) - [Live Results](/Results) - [Lunchtime Clubs](/LunchtimeClubs) #### ESSTA Kids Expert learning programmes for children who need extra support. [Visit esstakids.com →](https://esstakids.com) © 2026 XTables Champions, An ESSTA Kids Programme. All rights reserved. [Privacy Policy](/PrivacyPolicy)• [Terms & Conditions](/TermsConditions)• [Sitemap](/sitemap.xml) XTables Champions Game-based times tables for children aged 6 to 11. No timers, no tears. For parents, schools and tutors. Part of ESSTA Kids. #### Platform - [Schools](/ForSchools) - [Levels & Progression](/levels-and-progression) - [Our Programme](/Programme) - [Rewards](/OurRewards) - [Pricing](/pricing) - [About Us](/About) - [Learning Philosophy](/LearningPhilosophy) - [Contact](/Contact) #### Community - [Insights](/Insights) - [For Parents Blog](/Blog) - [Tips & Tricks](/TipsTricks) - [Success Stories](/SuccessStories) - [Events & Competitions](/Events) - [Live Results](/Results) - [Lunchtime Clubs](/LunchtimeClubs) #### ESSTA Kids Expert learning programmes for children who need extra support. [Visit esstakids.com →](https://esstakids.com) © 2026 XTables Champions, An ESSTA Kids Programme. All rights reserved. [Privacy Policy](/PrivacyPolicy)• [Terms & Conditions](/TermsConditions)• [Sitemap](/sitemap.xml)