The goal of this practice guide is to offer educators specific, evidence-based recommendations that address the challenge of teaching early math to children ages 3 to 6. The guide provides practical, clear information on critical topics related to teaching early math and is based on the best available evidence as judged by the authors. The guide…

Little research has focused on an informal understanding of subtractive negation (e.g., 3 - 3 = 0) and subtractive identity (e.g., 3 - 0 = 3). Previous research indicates that preschoolers may have a fragile (i.e., unreliable or localized) understanding of the addition-subtraction inverse principle (e.g., 2 + 1 - 1 = 2). Recognition of a small…

Memorizing the basic number combinations, such as 9 + 7 = 16 and 16 - 9 = 7, is a punishing and insurmountable task for children with difficulties learning mathematics. Two perspectives on such learning lead to different conclusions about the primary source of this key learning difficulty. According to the conventional wisdom (the Passive Storage…

Four three-year-old girls were studied in seven sessions during a three-month period for their performance on rote and object counting tasks. Two exhibited behavior consistent with underlying stable-order and uniqueness principles. (MNS)

Eleven retarded children with mental ages (MA) less than 4.5 years were examined to evaluate whether there is a critical MA for learning basic counting principles and how an understanding of counting develops. Results are discussed in terms of individual needs. (MNS)

This article compares the relative merits of using Cuisenaire rods (unsegmented, unnumbered, and representing continuous quantities) and number sticks (segmented, numbered, and representing discrete quantities) to introduce number and arithmetic concepts to beginning students or students with learning difficulties or mental disabilities. (DB)

Reviewed is an integrated approach to teaching place-value concepts. A semi-integrated approach is proposed which may provide a more effective implementation of the technique. (CW)