Chapter 3 - Role of Play and Games in Building Children's Foundational Numerical Knowledge

Abstract

Abstract Children learn early foundational mathematical knowledge during the preschool years. In this chapter, we describe how play and games can provide children with opportunities to practice and build this knowledge. We first focus on the importance of numerical magnitude knowledge and then draw upon theoretical and empirical work to demonstrate that both traditional games and computer games can improve young children's mathematical knowledge. We close with a discussion of the use of age appropriate, engaging, and motivating numeracy-related games to promote numerical knowledge in early childhood classrooms.