Number line estimation (NLE) tasks are widely used to investigate numerical cognition, learning, and development, and as an instructional tool. Interpretation of these tasks generally involves an implicit expectation that responses are driven by the overall magnitudes of target numerals, in the sense that the particular digits conveying those…

Historically there has always been a lively research discussion on whether the development of number concept should be considered as innate, or whether the catalyst for the development of the number concept -- and for counting -- is hearing number words combined with seeing concrete examples. One can recognize these theories as the nativist view…

Young children must develop basic concepts of numeracy--one being that numbers have magnitudes that increase linearly--before they are able to succeed in mathematics. Children from low-income families have been found to be at a greater disadvantage in the development of numeracy, but this disadvantage can be overcome through the use of a simple…

This article describes the development of number concepts between infancy and early childhood. It is based on a diary study that tracked number word use in a child from 12 to 38 months of age. Number words appeared early in the child's vocabulary, but accurate reference to specific numerosities evolved gradually over the entire 27-month period.…

To date, a number of studies have demonstrated the existence of mismatches between children's "implicit" and "explicit" knowledge at certain points in development that become manifest by their gestures and gaze orientation in different problem solving contexts. Stimulated by this research, we used eye movement measurement to…

Previous research has reported that children's numerical equivalence judgments are affected by surface similarity and counting ability (e.g. Mix, Huttenlocher, & Levine, 1996; Siegel, 1973), a pattern that suggests categorization processes play a role in numerical development. However, because these studies involved memory for sets, large set…

The number line estimation task captures central aspects of children's developing number sense, that is, their intuitions for numbers and their interrelations. Previous research used children's answer patterns and verbal reports as evidence of how they solve this task. In the present study we investigated to what extent eye movements recorded…

Three- to 7-year-old children were trained through reinforcement to select the more or less numerous of two rows of squares. All children successfully judged relative numerosity when number covaried with length or density, but only concrete operational children were successful when numbers did not covary with other dimensions. (Author/DB)

Two samples of kindergarten children's representation and understanding of written number symbols were examined in two time points in one academic year. About 85% of Chinese five year olds (mean = 5 years 10 months) were able to use conventional number symbols to represent the quantity of 30 or larger. At the end of the kindergarten year, 94% of…

Children's accounts of their participation in sociocultural activity related to number are essential for their teachers in order that they can assist children in building their formal learning in number on informally acquired numerical understandings. Children's participation in sociocultural activity related to number will differ from child to…

Compares the Genevan and Cattell-Horn theories of intelligence and describes both similarities and differences. Describes a study investigating the relation of the Piagetian operative level to the child's ability to use crystallized solution procedures (aids) in making elementary numerical comparisons. (HOD)

Two alternative hypotheses can be used to explain how young children acquire the cardinal meaning of small-number words. The first stresses the role of counting and predicts better performance when the items are presented in succession. The second considers the role of subitizing and predicts better performance when the items are presented…

Two experiments examined the development of children's understanding of part-whole relations. Found that five- and six-year olds evidenced understanding of part-whole relations, but four-year olds did not. Results support the conclusion that an understanding of the relationship between a superordinate set and the basic-level sets that comprise it…

Seriation refers to the process of ordering objects along single or multiple magnitude dimensions such as length, weight, and color. The ability to order objects in terms of some attribute is essential for the child's understanding of the properties of numbers. This study investigated the effect on seriation performance of increasing both the…

Four-year-old (N=45) children were trained for eight weeks in one of three conditions: (1) logical foundations (classification and seriation); (2) number skills (counting); and (3) control. The experimental treatments were based on the logical foundations model of Piagetian theorists and a skill integration model. (Author/BS)