Author:
Björklund Camilla,Elofsson Jessica
Abstract
AbstractThis paper reports on an investigation of how playfulness and mathematics as a content for learning appear in mathematics teaching about numbers with six-year-olds in Sweden. A total of 81 observations of teaching activities are qualitatively analyzed, resulting in three appearances: mathematical content as the primary task; exploring the mathematical content in a relevant context; and the mathematical task situated in a playful context. These entail different opportunities for the six-year-olds to experience meaningful mathematics. The paper discusses the significance of playfulness as a feature of mathematics teaching in early education, and particularly brings to the fore nuances in different ways of making playfulness an asset in teaching.
Publisher
Springer International Publishing
Reference19 articles.
1. Björklund, C., Magnusson, M., & Palmér, H. (2018). Teachers’ involvement in children’s mathematizing - beyond dichotomization between play and teaching. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 26(4), 469–480. https://doi.org/10.1080/1350293X.2018.1487162
2. Burghardt, G. M. (2011). Defining and recognizing play. In A. D. Pellegrini (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of the development of play (pp. 9–18). Oxford University Press.
3. El’Konin, D. B. (1999). Toward the problem of stages in the mental development of children. Journal of Russian & East European Psychology, 37(6), 11–30. https://doi.org/10.2753/RPO1061-0405370611
4. Freudenthal, H. (1968). Why to teach mathematics as to be useful? Educational Studies in Mathematics, 1(1), 3–8.
5. Freudenthal, H. (1981). Problems of mathematics education. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 12(2), 133–150.