Spontaneous focusing on numerosity and the development of early numerical skills

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Project themeThis research project will look at the development of children's numerical skills in the preschool and primary school years. It will explore new ways of supporting early numerical development through informal number-based activities. BackgroundWe know from recent research that children show individual differences in numerical skills even before they start school. These differences appear to have long lasting effects, with numerical knowledge before school predicting mathematical skills throughout primary and secondary school. As such, it is important to uncover the factors which affect children's early numerical development. One important factor (which has recently been discovered) is the extent to which children recognise and use numbers in informal everyday settings. Or, in other words, the extent to which children spontaneously focus on numbers. Studies have shown that preschool children show individual differences in their tendency to spontaneously focus on numbers, and these differences predict both current numerical skills and later mathematics success in school. This raises interesting questions as to whether we can support early numerical development by training children to focus on numbers in informal everyday settings. Research activitiesThe research in this project will address three questions:1) Why does spontaneous focusing on numbers predict early numerical skills? 2) How does formal mathematics instruction affect children's tendency to spontaneously focus on numbers?3) Can we increase children's tendency to spontaneously focus on numbers? If so, does this lead to better mathematical outcomes?To address these questions I will carry out three strands of research:1) I will give children (aged 4-5 years) a range of tasks designed to measure their numerical skills and the extent to which they spontaneously focus on numbers. I will look at the strength of the relationship between these skills to uncover the reasons why children's tendency to spontaneously focus on numbers has a positive influence on numerical skills. 2) Working with researchers across Europe I will look at the extent to which children spontaneously focus on numbers in preschools and primary schools in Northern Ireland, England, Belgium and Finland. Children in these countries all start school (and are first introduced to formal mathematics instruction) at different ages; 4, 5, 6, and 7 years, respectively. This provides a natural opportunity to uncover the effect of formal mathematics instruction on children's tendency to spontaneously focus on numbers. 3) Working closely with preschool teachers and parents I will design informal number-based activities that encourage children to spontaneously focus on numbers. These will be simple, low-cost activities that can be easily integrated into everyday preschool routines. I will evaluate the effectiveness of these activities by measuring children's numerical skills (and the extent to which they spontaneously focus on numbers) before and after the activities have been introduced. Sharing findingsThe project findings will further our theoretical understanding of the factors affecting children's early numerical development. They will be of interest to researchers in developmental psychology and mathematics education. I will publish findings nationally and internationally through journals, conferences and workshops. The findings will also have important practical applications for early years mathematics education. As such, they will be shared with those involved in children's education directly (e.g. teachers, parents) and indirectly (e.g. educational policymakers). I will produce a variety of written publications including project newsletters, education magazine articles and education policy reports. I will also organise national teacher workshops and I will develop practical resources including teacher packs, online podcasts and mobile applications.