The role of executive function training in supporting child development has been increasingly studied. Executive function is largely related to the prefrontal cortex. The anterior portion of the prefrontal cortex, which is area 10 on the Brodmann map, is essential for the emergence of higher-order executive functions. Accumulating evidence…

Using a game-based context and concentrating explicitly on language, students in the early years are able to make sense about place value amid the vagaries of the English language in naming numbers. This conceptual approach to understanding place value allows students to further develop number strategies beyond counting by ones.

There is a call for enabling students to use a range of efficient mental and written strategies when solving addition and subtraction problems. To do so, students should recognise numerical structures and be able to change a problem to an equivalent problem. The purpose of this article is to suggest an activity to facilitate such understanding in…

Place-value is an essential concept that is foundational for understanding our number system and for developing procedures for multidigit operations, but there has been limited research into the place-value understanding of students with learning disabilities. This research is a two-part mixed-methods study that links basic research to…

Tossing a fair coin 1000 times can have an unexpected result. In the activities presented here, players keep track of the accumulated total for heads and tails after each toss, noting which player is in the lead or whether the players are tied. The winner is the player who was in the lead for the higher number of turns over the course of the game.…

Students around the world have difficulties in learning about fractions. In many countries, the average student never gains a conceptual knowledge of fractions. This research guide provides suggestions for teachers and administrators looking to improve fraction instruction in their classrooms or schools. The recommendations are based on a…

How do children use physical and virtual tools to develop new numerical knowledge? While concrete instructional materials may support the delivery of novel information to learners, they may also over-simplify the task, unintentionally reducing learners' performance in recall and transfer tasks. This reduction in testing performance may be…

How can children's natural perceptuo-motor skills be harnessed for teaching and learning mathematical structure? We address this question in the case of the integers. Existing research suggests that adult mental representations of integers recruit perceptuo-motor functionalities involving symmetry. Building on these findings, we designed a…

How do teachers teach students to count rhythms? Teachers can choose from various techniques. Younger students may learn themed words (such as "pea," "carrot," or "avocado"), specific rhythm syllables (such as "ta" and "ti-ti"), or some other counting method to learn notation and internalize rhythms. As students grow musically, and especially when…

This document presents a review of evidence commissioned by the Education Endowment Foundation to inform the guidance document "Improving Mathematics in Key Stages Two and Three" (Education Endowment Foundation, 2017). The review draws on a substantial parallel study by the same research team, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, which…

Two ideas to use as a bulletin board display as an activity center, or as worksheets emphasizing whole number concepts are described. (JT)

The concepts of number sense and numeration, operations, and whole-number computations and their importance are discussed. Activities cover developing concepts of operations, exploring patterns and relationships, and building an understanding of mathematical structure. (KR)

These worksheets will provide students with experiences in identifying largest and smallest single-digit numbers, in writing names for single-digit numbers, in tests of divisibility, and in writing number sentences. (MP)

Measurement experiences can promote and illustrate number work in an intuitively satisfying way. Some current practices that are counterproductive for developing number sense and some alternative strategies that are more constructive are included in discussions of the approximate nature of measurement, realistic measurement, and work with rational…

Provides instructions for 23 mathematics learning activities for young children in early childhood settings. Includes activities for ordering, numeral recognition, counting, number sense and numeration, and a list of suggested music, movement, and book ideas for each area. (KB)