The Development of Number Concept and the Use of Counting in Problem Solving of 5-7 Year Olds*

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine the development of number concept in 5-7 year olds. The development of counting principles and the adoption of counting as a strategy in different problem situations were considered as the indicators of numerical development. Participants were 74 children from Kindergarten and first grades of primary schools in 5 different districts in a mid-Anatolian city. Data were collected through a measurement tool which consists of 14 questions measuring such skills as counting, comparison, generating sets of objects. Results showed that for children in this age interval, questions of the type “generate a set of a specific number of objects” measure the acquisition of cardinality principle more accurately than those questions of the type “how many” since answering these questions requires the acquisition of other counting principles. In all skills examined in this study there was a development by age. Furthermore, cardinality principle was less developed compared to other counting principles.