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spatial reasoning spatial relationships math picture books for developing spatial thinking

Big Ideas of Spatial Relationships

Big Ideas of Spatial Relationships

  1. Big Ideas
  2. Spatial Relationships

spatial reasoning spatial relationships

Spatial Relationships

Understanding spatial relationships and developing spatial reasoning begins at birth. Infants are learning to reach for and then grasp objects that are dangled in front of them, tossed to the side, or that have fallen down from a chair. Toddlers are crawling, cruising, or walking to reach a toy. By the time they are preschoolers, not only can children easily locate items or decide how best to get from here to there; they also have begun to represent space. The key concepts embedded in activities that make them mathematical are their relational nature. Later on in mathematics, children will learn to apply numbers to such activities, measuring distances and angles, and learning the meaning of “parallel” and “equilateral,” but for now, their efforts will be focused on less precise ways to represent relationships between objects and places.

Copyright: Erikson Institute’s Early Math Collaborative. Reprinted from Big Ideas of Early Mathematics: What Teachers of Young Children Need to Know (2014), Pearson Education.

Big Ideas

● Spatial relationships can be visualized and manipulated mentally.
● Our own experiences of space and two-dimensional representations of space reflect a specific point of view.
● Relationships between objects and places can be represented with mathematical precision.

Interested in Book Suggestions?

Browse our favorite children’s books that explore Spatial Relationships.

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NEWS029 spring math activities for kindergarten

It’s Picnic Time. Don’t Forget to Pack the Math!

Many classrooms are planning year-end picnics, so it’s the perfect time to read We’re Going on a Picnic! by the beloved author Pat Hutchins to encourage their spatial reasoning skills.

Tangram Puzzles: Make One For Your Kids

Instructor Lisa Ginet explains how to make tangram puzzles, an ancient Chinese game made from seven shapes cut from a square. Over 6500 different arrangements can be made from these seven simple shapes!

EMTR072-2 math game, education

Walk with Rosie

In this video, students explore spatial relationships by describing and traversing an obstacle course, then making a map of it. This activity deepens children’s understanding of spatial relationships and spatial reasoning by connecting words, actions and symbols.

Working “Through” Math with English Language Learners

It is tough learning two new languages at once. In the case of ELLs, the two “languages” are often English and math.

Using Direction Words to Describe Movement of Objects with Child 12

In this video, a preschool-age English Language Learner uses direction words to tell a story about finding a lost teddy bear.

Browse all that match this in our Idea Library.

Big Ideas of Early Mathematics:

What Teachers of Young Children Need to Know

The Big Ideas that convey the core concepts of mathematics are at the heart of this book that gives early childhood educators the skills they need to organize for mathematics teaching and learning during the early years.
Order a copy

Online MS in Early Childhood Ed – STEM Focus

Get your degree online!

Elevate your practice and strengthen your knowledge of teaching and learning in the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), with an emphasis on children in preschool through third grade.
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