Quantification and use of numerical information up to two units in three- to four-year-old children / Cuantificación y uso de informaciones numéricas hasta dos unidades en niños de tres a cuatro años

Abstract

In this paper we investigate how children quantify the faces of a single die with no dots, one dot and two dots, and how they handle a situation that requires the use of this information. We analysed the performance of 61 children ranging from 2:9 to 3:11 years on two tasks: quantification (say what’s on the faces with none, one and two dots) and use of the information (move a horse along a path using as many steps as dots shown on the face of the die). We hypothesized that developing the appropriation of these competencies, quantification and use of numerical information, follows the order: absence of elements, one element and two elements. The results indicate that from 3:4 years, children are able to quantify and interpret the numerical value of up to two units. Prior to this age, this appropriation occurs gradually and progressively, from one to two. Our results show the developmental nature of the appropriation of the quantities’ numerical value. However, the results do not support the idea that this process starts from the correct handling of the absence of quantities.