Our Story
Why we exist
It began with a conversation. Or rather... it began with hundreds of them.
"I'm no good at maths."
"I've always hated maths."
"I don't think I'll ever pass."
Almost every learner I met started by saying the same thing. At first, I thought they were talking about mathematics.
The longer I taught, the more I realised they weren't. They were talking about themselves.
They had come to believe that mathematics simply wasn't for them. That belief was often a bigger obstacle than the mathematics itself.
It was at that moment that everything changed. I realised that before I could teach mathematics, I often needed to help people believe they could learn it.
That simple realisation became the beginning of Making Maths Make Sense.
Listening changed everything
Over the years I have taught learners in colleges, prisons, workplaces and one-to-one settings. Every learner brought a different story.
Some had left school believing they had failed. Some had spent years avoiding mathematics altogether.
Others had missed university places, careers or opportunities because one qualification stood in their way.
The more I listened, the clearer one truth became.
There is no such thing as a typical maths learner. Every person arrives with different experiences, different strengths and different fears.
So why should everyone be taught in exactly the same way?
More than mathematics
People often assume that I teach mathematics. Of course I do. But mathematics is only part of the story.
What really interests me is helping people rediscover confidence.
Helping them replace
"I can't."
"Maybe I can."
Because once that begins to happen, learning becomes possible. Again and again, I've seen learners achieve things they once thought were impossible. Not because they suddenly became good at maths — because they finally found an explanation that made sense to them.
Meet Angela
I'm Angela. I've spent many years teaching mathematics in a wide range of settings and working with learners from many different backgrounds.
Along the way, my learners taught me something I never expected. They taught me that the greatest barriers to learning mathematics are often not mathematical at all.
Those experiences led me to undertake research through my Master's degree and continue my professional development, including training in trauma coaching, as I seek to better understand the relationship between psychology and mathematical learning.
Today, everything I do — whether I'm teaching, writing books or developing new resources — is guided by one simple question:
What is your relationship with maths?
Looking forward
Making Maths Make Sense continues to grow. New books are being developed. New ideas are emerging. Research continues.
The forthcoming book, The Psychology of Maths, explores many of the ideas that first began through conversations with learners.
But one thing remains unchanged — the belief that inspired all of this in the first place.
Thank you
Thank you for taking the time to read our story. I hope it helps explain not only what we do, but why we care so deeply about doing it.
If you've ever believed mathematics wasn't for you, I'd love the opportunity to help you discover that perhaps it simply hasn't been explained in the right way — yet.
Before you leave...
I'd like to ask you the same question that started all of this.
What is your relationship with maths?
Because every learner's story is different — and every new story reminds me why Making Maths Make Sense exists.