Background: The context of this research is reading literacy instruction in Foundation Phase classrooms in South Africa. Although large-scale studies have researched learner performance, little is known of the nuances of teachers' practice, particularly in the non-verbal realm. This research seeks to address that gap. Aim: This research…

Mathematical reasoning, which plays a critical role in students' capacity to make sense of mathematics, is now emphasised more strongly in various curricula internationally. However, reasoning is sometimes difficult for teachers to recognise, let alone teach. This case study considers video of one teacher's implementation of a problem-solving…

Responding to concerns that play is at risk in the early years of education, this article investigates teachers' current use of play in language and literacy instruction in Grade 1 and 2 Alberta classrooms. It addresses what teachers say they need to make play part of school-based language and literacy education. Survey findings show a recognition…

This descriptive case study examined how teaching practices were evidenced in Grade 1 classrooms in two different cultural and educational contexts, Finland and Japan. Teachers' teaching practices were video-recorded in 53 classrooms in Finland and six classrooms in Japan and rated with the Early Childhood Classroom Observation Measure by trained…

This article explores the usefulness of detective role-play as a research method to facilitate young children's critical thinking. The study examines four specifically designed detective play experiences, adopting an ethical rights-based approach to research with children. This qualitative multiple-case study is grounded in play-based pedagogy…

This research examines the use of ECL media to improve literacy information of Islamic elementary school students. The method used was repeated pre-experiment without a control class. The research design used was one group pre-test and post-test. Data were analyzed using paired t-test, n-gain calculation, and ANOVA using IBM SPSS Version 25. The…

The current study examined teachers' perceptions with regard to the Guided Reading (GR) approach in elementary level education. Specifically, this study examined the following research questions: a) What are Alberta teachers' perceptions about the GR approach? b) What are Alberta teachers' perceptions about how they enact GR in the classroom? and…

Within an Orff-based program implemented in Israel, this mixed-methods study examined the effects of age on emerging rhythmic literacy in children. Participants (N = 132) were kindergarteners (n = 45) and first-graders (n = 87) aged 4 to 7.8 years. The participants performed a rhythm entitled "Rhythm-A" through the body and instrumental…

A homogeneous distribution of students in a class is accepted as a key factor for overall success in primary education. A class of students with similar attributes normally increases academic success. It is also a fact that general academic success might be lower in some classes where students have different intelligence and academic levels. In…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of instructional methods based on Constructivist theory and cooperative learning on first-grade students' mathematical learning achievement and social awareness. Method: A natural sample of 30 children aged 6-7 years old was cluster-randomized into an experimental group. Mathematical…

This article explores the potential for engaging 7 and 8-year-old school pupils in performative literature interpretation through process drama. Inspired by new materialism and affect theory, we focus on how literature interpretations come into being in dramatic fiction, and on how these becoming interpretations merge with the classroom. The study…

The study presents the basic features of the Philosophy for Children (P4C) pedagogical approach and asks about the experiences of Czech primary school teachers in using it. The empirical investigation of qualitative design is based on interviews (n = 4) and their analysis using the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) method. The results…

Educational apps can help children develop their early numeracy skills, but only if they incorporate certain pedagogical features. AppLINOU is an early numeracy app that was co-designed by a multidisciplinary team to be compatible with the way numeracy is taught in France's preschools. This study of whether incorporating AppLINOU into classroom…

This article presents research focused on establishing ways that dialogic talk between teachers and students promotes mathematical reasoning in early years classrooms. Data are drawn from recorded and transcribed Year 1 mathematics lessons. Conversation analysis provides close examination of the talk-in-interaction practices of teachers and…

Learning to calculate with natural numbers by structuring seems promising but how this can be taught in a sustainable manner remains an open question. An eight-month-long intervention based on the idea of using a structural approach to addition and subtraction, and particularly bridging through ten, was implemented in four Swedish first-grade…