SHAPE and SPACE
knowledge)
ANGLE IN LOGO ENVIRONMENT
Turtle Paths set out to explore
childrens understanding
Amount of turn in work with
angles
Clements et al in 1990
after working in logo contexts designed to
address ideas of angle and turn, children
develop mathematically correct, coherent and
abstract ideas about these concepts
ideas being studied
- paths and lengths of paths
- turns in paths
- paths with the same lengths involving
isometric exercises
Studies found out:
role of the computer environment in
the development of childrens concept
of turn
A dialectical relationship between two
cognitive schemes, extrinsic perspective
and intrinsic perspective in students
knowledge of turns
EXTRINSIC PERSPECTIVE
frame of reference imposed
from the outside
THE TURN is determined by its
relationship to something fixed
and external to it e.g. co-
ordinate geometry
INTRINSIC PERSPECTIVE
children are in control and can
direct the turtle without any
external constraint
4 more specific themes (procedural
The concept of turn
Right and left directionality
(clockwise and anti-clockwise)
The measure of turn
Combining turns
Clements et. al.
turns are less salient for children than
motion from one position to another
the reason suggested for childrens
difficulties is the fact:
a turn is represented by two straight line
segments being joined at a point and angle has
something to do with space between line
segments
Conclusion: 3 aspects to conceptualization
1. Children have to maintain record of
mental images of the initial and final
heading of an object as it turns
2. Children have to re-present the
activity of the rotation of an object
from its initial to its final heading and
compare these images
3. Having to deal with multiplicity of ideas
at one time e.g. they are having to deal
with both length and turn and their
relationship.
points out the complexity of the
concept of angle
Misconceptions formed can be
long lasting and difficult to
overcome.
children have made valuable cognitive
constructions concerning rotation in the
course of investigation
CHILDRENS CONCEPT OF 3D SHAPE
Investigated by AngiIilieri and Baron (1997)
66 children
Poleidoblocs (cubes, cuboids,
cylinders, triangular prisms,
cones and pyramids that are
interrelated)
Practical activities are involved
5 Kinds of Mathematical Experience
1. Sorting using shape, color and size and
function
2. Balancing and intuitive notions of
measurement
3. Ideas related to stability
4. Aspects of parallel sloping and
horizontal faces together with central
positioning
5. Concept of symmetry
Basis of for the structured tasks at the
beginning:
1. Matching three-dimensional shapes and
two-dimensional faces
2. Building a tower beside another tower
and matching its height.
3. A tactile task where a cylinder was
shown, then the child had to select the
same shape from a feely bag
4. Sorting where all the bricks the same as
the green cylinder had to be selected
from a set of ten, then all the bricks the
same shape.
5. Continuing a sequence of red bricks in
the order: cube, cuboid, cylinder, cube,
cuboid and two more bricks.
CONCLUSION:
Childrens learning about three dimensional
shapes achieved by handling and using them in
constructions can be improved upon through
experience with the shapes where only tactile
and visual experience are involved.
CONCLUSION:
Discussion involving the names and
characteristics of the 3-D shapes is necessary
for children to clarify mathematical
understanding.
Clements et. al.
the students in the study is at
the pre-representational in the
van Hiele hierarchy
TWO-DIMENSIONAL ARRAYS
(FIRST STUDY: Development of 7 and 8-year old
childrens spatial skills)
Battista et. al.
Found that the children were
disorganized in the way they
approached counting the edges
of triangular prisms they
themselves constructed, and
had no global schema in the
early stages to count in small
groups of composites
It is seen as kind of abstraction, and by applying
it in spatial situations children:
a) Have to identify the spatial
components of the situation
b) Combine these spatial
components into composites
c) Establish an interrelationship
between the components and
the composites
progress beyond this stage when they
construct the notion of perspective, recognize
that the orthogonal views must somehow be
coordinated and become capable of
accomplishing such coordination
SECOND STUDY
Stage 1: Children are interviewed
Stage 2: Data was analyzed to produce
descriptions of the mechanisms used; and if
possible, identify levels in their counting
approach
3 LEVELS OF CHILDRENS COUNTING APPROACH
1. Complete lack of any row-by-column
structuring
2. Partial structuring
3. A. structuring in sets of row-by-column
composites
B. Counting visually
Implication:
Children who have not reached
a stage of seeing arrays in
composite units will find it
difficult to group objects or
symbols to represent
multiplicative structure
CABRI GEOMETRY WITH 8- TO 11-YR-OLDS
Constructionism
Learning approaches in which
the learner constructs
knowledge through building a
meaningful product
Children by doing mathematics enter into an
increasingly informed relationship with the
mathematical concepts embedded within that
activity and the more connections made ...
the more concrete it becomes for the learner
THE DEVELOPMENT OF SPATIAL
ABILITIES IN OLDER CHILDREN
MENTAL MODELS OF SPATIAL
CONCEPTS
Chinnapan
Effective use of prior topic
knowledge during problem
solving is dependent upon the
organization of that knowledge
Schema cluster of knowledge
that contains information about
core concepts, the relations bet
these concepts and knowledge
about when and how to use it.
Chinnapan
He notes that the more
elaborate schema, the more
likely pupils will be able to
construct useful, as well as
multiple representations of
problem ...schemas may be
used by pupils in their
organization of geometrical
knowledge
These organized knowledge structures
are viewed in terms of:
the acquisition of
mathematical concepts,
principles and procedures
the organization of these into
schemas
Leading to the provision of a
knowledge base for further
mathematical activity
Chinnapan points out we need to
develop the necessary knowledge
structures that will help low achievers
to become more effective problem-
solvers
PERCEPTION OF SHAPE ANGLE
 Orton (1997)
Relationship between childrens
perception of pattern and their
general ability and issues in
manipulating 2D shapes
Orton (1997)
Pattern means included ideas
of shape recognition,
congruence and symmetry
...linked with transformations
Orton (1997)
Children aged 9-10: established
a body of pattern recognition or
knowledge but lack the
vocabulary with which to
describe it
Results indicate 3 Developmental stages
in pattern recognition:
Stage 1: copying a shape; detection of
embedded pictures; simple completion of
pattern; matching picture shape; recognition of
vertical axis; simple rotation and reflection;
completing task with a frame of reference
Results indicate 3 Developmental stages
in pattern recognition:
Stage 2: matching of embedded shapes;
matching simple geometric shapes in different
orientations; more complex rotation and
reflection tasks with a frame of reference
Results indicate 3 Developmental stages
in pattern recognition:
Stage 3: matching more complex shapes in
different orientations; more complex
completion of pattern tasks including rotation;
recognition of most reflection and rotation
Main result of the study:
pupils lack the vocabulary to
describe what they see
thus reinforcing the
importance of language in
developing spatial abilities
Understanding Perpendicularity
1. Two lines
2. Line intersects
3. The right angle is formed at the
intersection point
4. There are three other angles
5. 3 other angles are right angles
6. A right angle is a 90 angle
Understanding Perpendicularity
Difficulties that the Pupils encountered:
1. Identification
2. Selection
3. Inference
Understanding Perpendicularity
Confusion about perpendicularity that results
from:
1. Way of visual information is
processed
2. Childrens thought processes
3. Childrens concept images
CONCLUSION:
visual links between right
angles, perpendicular lines, and
the complex figures in which
they appear need to be
specifically addressed
 using concrete models, 1. Structuring identifying geometric
drawings and mental properties and combinations of
verifications properties within a geometric structure
2. Classifying grouping the structures
COMPUTER ENVIRONMENT STUDIES
together according to their properties
Jones (1997) 3. Transposing establishing correlations
and equivalences bridging, geometric
when using computers or mode with other different
manipulatives consider representational modes (physical,
carefully what stands between linguistic, algebraic, geometric);
the learners and the 4. Determining defining
knowledge that they are elements/parameters determined by
intended to learn geometric limitations of spatial
We need to focus on learning, structure
mediated through employing 5. Generating modifying spatial
such resources that involves structure to meet specific geometric
them in the use of conventional criteria
terminology competency operation Type of
Cabri geometry as one of many activity
Dynamic Geometry Analytic/synth transposi From
Environments etic ng linguistic
input to
Explore the mediation of physical
learning in a particular model
teaching/learning situation Operation Generatin Guided
involving the use of Cabri g constructio
n of model
DEVELOPING SPATIAL COMPETENCES Analytic Structurin Recognitio
g n of
Pallascho et al. (1993)
characteris
Investigated 12 year olds in teaching tics of
three dimensional shapes; finds the models
effects of alternating approaches of Analytic/synth Transposi Physical to
etic ng drawing
teaching sequence
Analytic Classifyin Examinatio
Aims to gain a better understanding of
g n of
the respective roles of the intellectual
possibilities
operations and types of spatial Synthetic Determini Reasoning
representations in the development of ng on the
spatialization skills basis of the
model and
5 Intellectual Operations in Learning about
drawing
shape:
synthetic generatin Unstructur
g ed
problem-
 solving
activities
Problems and difficulty:
1. Working with models selected by the
teacher which did not necessarily
correspond to their perceptions of
reality
2. Pupils who appeared to be familiar with
two-dimensional representation of
space found 3D representations difficult
it is important not to create new
obstacles to learning therefore the
materials must be chosen carefully
results from the study:
involving pupils in carrying out
activities that require the
intellectual operation of
determining
pupils were able to bring together
what they had found as a result of
their mental and tactile
explorations with 3D shapes and to
reflect upon these actions to solve
problem
results from the study:
generally, the study had
established the importance of using
different competences implicit in
Piagetian theory with respect to the
development of spatial abilities in
children
IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHING
TEACHING SPATIAL SKILLS AND
CONCEPTS TO YOUNGER CHILDREN
2D shape is an abstraction and a 2D
array is a further abstraction; activities
involving sequencing and counting will
help them organize their knowledge
and develop strategies and structures
for using it.
Spatial skills and concepts that were
not well learned in the early years cause
problems; teaching rely more on
definition
involving children in the development
of a model of solving problems would
help to direct their attention to the
features common to all problems
TEACHING SPATIAL SKILLS AND
CONCEPTS TO OLDER CHILDREN
the research evidence of about
teaching perpendicularity is a good
example of how easy it is to take for
granted that children see what we see
identifying pupils abilities in relation to
the different kinds of competence and
intellectual operations involved in a
single geometric problem solving
exercise could be useful diagnostic
exercise
COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY
studies suggest that the technology
provides a rich tool for teaching in
geometric teaching
appropriate and well-timed teacher
intervention is very important when
using technology
computers help students develop
pupils ability with respect to deductive
reasoning and intellectual operations
teacher awareness in a Logo type of
environment to develop the concept of
angle to younger children
gender issues need special attention in
computer learning environment