Category Archives: edushare

Can animals count?

I know what you’re thinking. She must be crazy. Of course animals can’t count. However some scientist argue that animals have mathematical abilities since the claim of Clever Hans in 1891. Clever Hans was a horse who was reportedly able to give the answer to basic mathematical calculations giving the answer by stomping his foot. Have a look here here.

However this was discredited when Psychologist Oskar Pfungst noticed that the horse was using cues from his owner to determine when to stop counting. There is no doubt that the horse was smart however not at counting as first thought. But don’t say I told you so just yet because..

There is however other research to support the claim that animals can demonstrate skills in counting. The experiment which impressed me most was the chimp experiment. The experiment involved the chimps adding up the number of chocolate pieces in the bowl and selecting the bowl which had the most chocolate pieces in it. The chimpanzee succeeded 90% of the time in this task. This experiment got me thinking about how intelligent animals really are, however i’m still not convinced in their ability to actually count.

References:

Goldman, J. (2012) Animals that can count Available at: http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20121128-animals-that-can-count (Last Accessed: 23.11.2015)

More than just a story

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Stories are something that most of us would have thoroughly enjoyed as children. Stories are a great stimulus for the development of language and literacy but also numeracy. When people think about story telling they often don’t think about the numeracy development which happens throughout. The discovering maths module has allowed me to understand some of the mathematical concepts which can be developed through story telling such as time, shape, size and colour. The use of mathematical language can also emerge through stories, examples of this could be in, out, behind. An important aspect of story telling is questioning as this supports the development of problem solving skills. For example, asking the children what they think might happen next in the story? What the character could have done differently?

Discovering maths has made me think about stories which can help develop and encourage enjoyment of mathematics. A lot of traditional tales can be used as a stimulus to develop numeracy and mathematical language.

‘Goldilocks and the three bears’ can help develop the mathematical concepts size and quantity. There is repetition with the sizes and quantities, the bowls, beds and chairs. Children can relate to the small bowl being for the small bear and the big bowl being for daddy bear which develops reasoning. This also helps develop mathematical language, ‘baby bears bowl is smaller than daddy bears’

There are also great follow up activities which can relate to numeracy development. A story sequence can be a good activity to help children not only recall the story but put the key parts into order which again is developing numeracy skills and mathematical language.

My Educational Philosophy

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Education is fundamental for children, not only for their academic development but also for their cognitive, social and emotional development as well as the development of life skills and integration in society. All children have the right to an education and should receive one. Learning does not necessarily always happen in school, children can learn from a parent, sibling relative or even peers. I feel that education is something which I have most definitely taken for granted, especially while I was at school and at the time I don’t think I valued education the same way I value education now.

While in school children should have access to a wide range of subjects, the Curriculum for Excellence has 8 core areas which children should be able to explore. This will allow children to develop knowledge and skills which they can transfer to various different learning experiences. It is important that the teacher has an understanding of the curriculum stages as well as the child’s level of development so the child can be encouraged to build on their learning and skills at a level appropriate to them. Children in school should have access to a variety of resources to aid their development and learning.

I believe that a positive school ethos is key to a child’s learning. Children should feel safe, valued and respected in school. Building a positive environment for children will encourage and motivate them to be active in their own learning. Every child should be treated equally and as an individual, they should also be included in all aspects of their learning.