Fingers and numbers – Training preschooler’s basic numerical skills with fingers

• Applicant: Dr. Stephanie Rösch
• Subject Area: Developmental and Educational Psychology ; General and Domain-Specific Teaching and Learning
• Term: since 2019
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 416596305

In recent years, accumulating evidence suggested that the representation of numbers may not be purely abstract, but presents a specific case of embodied cognition rooted in the sensory and bodily experiences of early finger counting and calculating. In line with this idea, two major lines of research have been pursued so far investigating the association of fingers and numbers: (i) One focusing on the relation between numerical abilities and both fine motor skills (FMS) as well as finger gnosis; and (ii) a second one concentrating on the impact of finger-based numerical strategies (i.e., finger counting, finger montring, and calculating with fingers) on numerical development. However, the mechanisms driving the relation between FMS/finger gnosis and numerical development still remain unknown. The same holds true for using finger-based numerical strategies to acquire numerical concepts.The proposed project aims at investigating the impact and interrelation of finger gnosis, FMS, and finger-based numerical strategies on numerical development. In particular, it will focus on the questions (1) whether both FMS and finger gnosis are directly relevant for children’s numerical development or whether this association is rather mediated by the actual use of finger-based numerical strategies, (2) whether finger-based numerical strategies are indeed causally linked to numerical abilities, and (3) which levels of numerical abilities according to the developmental model by Krajewski and Schneider (2009) are influenced in particular by finger-based numerical strategies. To pursue these questions, a controlled intervention study with pre-posttest-follow-up design and at least 270 preschoolers will be conducted. This study will aim at enhancing children’s numerical abilities by a finger-based numerical training (group 1). Increases in numerical abilities of the training group will be compared to specifically chosen control groups. One control group will receive an equivalent, but not finger-based numerical training (group 2). A second control group will attend common mathematics education at preschool (i.e., “treatment as usual”) enriched by storytelling activities to control for the effect of additional attention (group 3). To further evaluate the influence of finger gnosis and FMS on numerical abilities, the finger-based numerical training (group 1) will be divided into two subgroups, one receiving a finger gnosis/FMS intervention prior to the finger-based numerical training (group 1a) while the other will participate in storytelling activities in the meantime (group 1b). By manipulating finger-related variables systematically, the proposed project will not only extend scientific knowledge on the development of embodied numerosity in general. The expected results will also be highly relevant to early childhood education.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Co-Investigator: Professor Dr. Korbinian Möller