Mathematics Learning Through Play: Educators’ Journeys

Abstract

This chapter describes a collaborative action research project that was conducted in one preschool and one primary school in Iceland, investigating approaches to pedagogical continuity across the transition from preschool to school. The participants were one teacher from each school level, who collaborated with the researchers. Data were gathered using interviews and notes from meetings. The teachers agreed upon using play with building blocks to create continuity in children’s learning. In this chapter, we report on the way the teachers’ ideas about mathematics and play evolved during their participation in the research. The implication of this study is that the teachers experienced a dilemma in the tension between the free play and the teaching of mathematical concepts. They were concerned about the ownership of the play and their own involvement as teachers. Further, they needed support to realise the mathematical concepts that they could expect the children to work on. Their participation in this research project empowered the teachers and influenced their practices and ideas around pedagogical continuity.