Two studies examined understanding of notational representation among 3- to 5-year-olds. Children solved problems when shown cards with a picture or word indicating identity or a quantity indicator. In the easier condition, children had difficulty solving the problems as a function of their familiarity with the notation, suggesting weaknesses in…

Sixty-six goals, mostly involving symbolic representation and cognitive processes, were evaluated to indicate those aspects of the summative research on Sesame Street that were bases for generalizing about research into the development of preschoolers. Unintended and intended outcomes were investigated as well as the program's effectiveness for…

Representational competence refers to the individual's capability to respond appropriately to external representations. For example, a child engaged in a grouping task may collect together all like objects even if the group contains varying representations of the object, including (1) the object itself, (2) a three-dimensional likeness of the…