Abstract
We aimed to identify the teaching practices that foster kindergarten children’s understanding of spatial orientation. Early childhood educators recognize the importance of children learning concepts of number, shape, measurement and geometry, but low self-144 efficacy in mathematical literacy can prove challenging to purposeful pedagogy (Opperman, Anders & Hachfeld, 2016). Grounded in ethnomethodology, Goodwin’s (2018) concept of environmentally coupled gestures is used to frame a teacher’s use of shapes on a lightboard and children’s gaze and bodily orientation and to make the concept of symmetry visible. Conversation analysis (Sidnell and Stivers, 2013) reveals the coordinated practices of pedagogy (Church, Bateman and Danby, 2022). Participants provided assent and consent to use the video data for the purposes of teaching and research, and video data are anonymised using filters and audio deletion of names. Knowledge-in-interaction is a collaborative achievement: children and teacher’s mutual monitoring of gaze, gesture and talk scaffolds the concept of bilateral symmetry. Pedagogy is not simply sequential (i.e. the teacher does something and the child does something else next), but shaped and moderated as the child and teacher ‘inhabit the actions of the other’ (Goodwin, 2018). Findings from this research demonstrate how effective, responsive engagement depends on the teacher’s close attunement to what the child is paying attention to, and how early mathematics learning can be mobilized through the use of typical, play opportunities
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | Early Mathematics and teacher's role |
Publication status | Published (VoR) - 1 Sept 2023 |
Event | European Early Childhood Education Research Association - Estoril Congress Centre, Cascais n. Lisbon, Portugal, Lisbon , Portugal Duration: 30 Aug 2023 → 2 Sept 2023 Conference number: 31st https://www.eecera.org/conference/31st-eecera-conference/ |
Conference
Conference | European Early Childhood Education Research Association |
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Abbreviated title | EECERA |
Country/Territory | Portugal |
City | Lisbon |
Period | 30/08/23 → 2/09/23 |
Internet address |