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Supporting Young Children's Numeracy Development With Guided Play
Ozlem Cankaya ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-sonnet-5-5This book chapter reviews research on how guided play can support young children's early number skills. Guided play means educators combine planned learning activities with the child-led nature of play, using adult support. The chapter argues that mathematics teaching and play do not need to compete for time in early learning and childcare settings. It ends with evidence-based recommendations for helping children build number skills through guided play.
Key points
- Longitudinal evidence shows numeracy knowledge before kindergarten shapes later mathematics achievement in primary grades and high school graduation.
- Mathematics education and play do not have to be binary or compete for time in early learning settings.
- Research shows play and planned mathematical activities enrich one another and contribute to learning outcomes.
- Guided play combines planned learning experiences with child-directed play through adult scaffolding.
- The chapter ends with evidence-based recommendations for supporting numerical competencies through guided play.
Limitations
Only the abstract is available, so it does not report the studies reviewed, their designs or any effect sizes. It names no country or setting, and as a synthesis chapter it does not evaluate a specific intervention.
Abstract
Mounting longitudinal evidence demonstrates that young children's numeracy knowledge before kindergarten determines their mathematics achievement path in primary grades and high school graduation. Mathematics education and children's play do not have to be binary and compete for time in early learning and childcare learning environments. Indeed, researchers demonstrate that play and planned mathematical activities enrich one another and ultimately contribute to children's learning outcomes. Guided play, in which educators combine planned learning experiences with the child-directed nature of play, focuses on learning outcomes through adult scaffolding. This chapter synthesizes research on how play experiences can be an organic but powerful process for scaffolding and elevating young children's mathematical understanding in light of current evidence from early numeracy research. In the conclusion of this chapter, evidence-based recommendations are introduced for facilitating children's developing numerical competencies and activating existing knowledge through guided play.