Parent–child math talk and early math interest: comparing the effects of written versus hands-on materials

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study investigated the impact of written and hands-on teaching materials on parent–child math talk and children’s interest in mathematics. Thirty parents and their preschool children participated in two play sessions, one using written material and the other using hands-on material, each lasting 12 min. At the end of each session, the children’s interest levels were assessed, and the frequency of math-related conversations was analysed. Regardless of the materials used, discussions primarily revolved around fundamental numerical concepts, with little mention of practical measurement units and conventional nominatives or number comparisons involving the application of mental representation. Ordinal and division concepts were only mentioned by parents in the written scenario rather than in the hands-on one. Overall, using written material led to doubling math discourse compared to hands-on material. However, children showed slightly higher interest levels in the hands-on scenario, where parent–child math talk categories also exhibited greater synchrony. The study highlights the complementary nature of written and hands-on teaching materials and provides recommendations for their future application.