The use of a digital dance mat for training kindergarten children in a magnitude comparison task

Abstract

Previous studies demonstrated that basic numerical skills reliably predict children's future mathematical performance. The spatial representation of numerical magnitude, represented in the form of a mental number line, seems to be of particular importance. Our training program for kindergarten children used a digital dance mat as input device that required children to move their whole body to respond in a magnitude comparison task. By employing such a spatial embodied training method, in a parallel randomized cross-over design, our study with 19 kindergarten children revealed a significant interaction between training condition and repeated exposure to items, implying that children improved more strongly in the dance mat than in the control condition. These results suggest that the use of digital media to train embodied spatial numerical skills may be more effective in basic numerical tasks such as magnitude comparison. We suggest that the involvement of embodied spatial codes, shared by the representation addressed by the task at hand, aids acquisition of task-relevant basic numerical skills.