Work

The benefits of math activities depend on the skills children bring to the table.

Year: 2023

Type: article

Abstract: = 76) to play with a number-related board game, an active control board game, or a business-as-usual control group. Controlling for number knowledge, inhibitory control, and vocabulary at pretest, no differences in math skills at posttest were observed between the training groups. However, a significant interaction emerged between training group assignment and number knowledge, such that children with higher pretest number knowledge had higher posttest math scores when assigned to the number board game condition compared to the two control conditions, but no differences among conditions were seen for children with lower number knowledge. Collectively, these findings suggest that math activities may be most beneficial for math skills when children have stronger number knowledge and underscore the need for tailoring activities to children's current skill level. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Source: Developmental Psychology

DOI: 10.1037/dev0001637

Authors: Alex M. Silver, Leanne Elliott, Andrew D. Ribner, Melissa E. Libertus

Institution: University of Pittsburgh

Language: English

Topic: Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skills

Subfield: Statistics and Probability

Field: Mathematics

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Quality education

Open Access status: hybrid