Assessing spatial reasoning during play: educator observations, assessment and curriculum planning

Abstract

Children are innately mathematical and explore mathematical concepts through play. However, educator beliefs about mathematics can impact the inclusion of mathematics in early childhood education (ECE). Recent research has suggested that spatial reasoning is a key concept which forms the foundations of mathematics learning. The theoretical argument underpinning this research is that young children benefit from intentional teaching specifically focused on supporting the development of children’s spatial reasoning skills during play. This mixed-methods research project investigated the effects of the implementation of a suite of play-based, spatial reasoning activities on educators’ teaching p..