Mathematical skills and motor life skills in toddlers: do differences in mathematical skills reflect differences in motor skills?

Abstract

This study examines possible relations between early mathematical skills and motor life skills in 450 toddlers aged two years and nine months. The study employs baseline data from the longitudinal Stavanger Project – The Learning Child. The children's mathematical skills and motor life skills were assessed by structured observation in the natural environments of kindergartens; authentic assessment. Two staff members independently observed each child during play and daily life activities over a period of three months. Consistent with recent studies of older children, the results revealed a significant relation between motor skills and mathematical skills. Children with weak, middle and strong motor life skills also exhibited low, medium or high levels of skills in mathematics. The differences between the groups yielded a moderate to large effect size (Cohen's d). The groups differ also for each of the six sections in the observation instrument (Counting and series of numbers, Enumeration, Shape and space, Pattern and order, Mathematical language, and Logical reasoning).