Using Number Games to Support Mathematical Learning in Preschool and Home Environments.

Part of Paper Symposium: Math Games: How Simple Math Interventions Interact with Child and Adult Language to Improve Outcomes for Young Children

Integrative Statement: Early math skills predict later academic achievement in math and other learning domains (e.g., Duncan, et al., 2007; Grissmer et al., 2010). Despite the importance of early math, competing demands leave limited time in many classrooms to engage in meaningful mathematics (Ginsburg, et al., 2008). Math games can be a simple and engaging way to increase time spent on math. Understanding the role of language can help educators and families implement math games more effectively and maximize their potential. 

The four papers presented in this symposium illustrate the ways in which language plays an important role in the effectiveness of math games interventions for improving outcomes for children. The first paper evaluates how the type of language teachers use during math game play influences the effectiveness of games to improve kindergartners’ understanding of numerical magnitude. The second paper discusses how teacher language and English language learner (ELL) status influences outcomes in a classroom- and home-based numerical math games intervention. The third paper outlines how ELL status is related to different levels of math achievement in speeded and non-speeded math game play for low-achieving kindergartners. The fourth paper investigates how parents’ spatial language use varies for young girls and boys during puzzle play. 

The papers here suggest that certain linguistic approaches to playing math games are more effective than others, and that ELLs may benefit more than non-ELLs from some interventions. Across the studies discussed, results show how mathematics and language are intertwined and how they can support one another.