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Learning Mathematics and Language through an Integrated Approach in Preschool Education
knowledge on their own. They do not distinguish between the subjective
and the objective, the real and fantasy world co-exist on the same plane. This
is why children are so attracted to fairy tales, because they depict the world
exactly as children imagine it (Purić and Maričić 2010).
For example, analysing the fairy tale Goldilocks and the Three Bears as part
of language development helps develop the skills of listening, speaking,
retelling, description, vocabulary enrichment, etc. When applied to mathe-
matics education, the said fairy tale creates a realistic and rich context which,
when coupled with didactic material, creates a basis for developing the con-
cept of number three, but also proportional relationships (big–small), seri-
ation by size, etc. There are three bears, three chairs, three tables, etc. in the
fairy tale. These elements are presented with by means of didactic mate-
rial and they help children create a clear mental image of number three. In
addition, the fairy tale can be used as a starting point for introducing pro-
portional relationships. Three bears are of different size, as well as their beds,
chairs, food bowls, clothes, etc. Children will identify these separate elements
and compare them to each other.
Numerous studies outline the benefits of this type of integrated mathe-
matics education which utilises literary content for children in preschool ed-
ucation (Welsh et al. 2010; Ojose 2008; Purpura et al. 2011; Rosen and Hoffman
2009; Skoumpourdi and Mpakopoulou 2011; Van den Heuvel-Panhuizen and
Elia 2011; Van den Heuvel-Panhuizen, Elia, and Robitzch 2016). Even a picture
book as the first book in the child’s life offers countless possibilities for inte-
grated teaching aimed at developing language and mathematical skills. The
fact these books contain little to no text helps teachers motivate their stu-
dents to upgrade and complement the image/images by inventing a story
of their own, which stimulates and channels their language development. In
addition, cognitive context of the picture book is familiar to the child, so he
will have no trouble identifying with it.
This way, the child will learn spontaneously, because reading the text from
a picture book represents a natural continuation of learning through play
which was a dominant teaching method during preschool education (Mar-
ičićm Maksimović, and Stakić 2018, 400). On the other hand, when it comes
to the development of mathematical skills, research results confirm a three-
month reading program which uses picture books containing mathematical
content has positive effects on the improvement of children’s math perfor-
mance even when no additional mathematical activities are involved (Van
den Heuvel-Panhuizen, Elia, and Robitzch 2016).
Given the opinion stated above, i. e. that all literary forms can be used
299
knowledge on their own. They do not distinguish between the subjective
and the objective, the real and fantasy world co-exist on the same plane. This
is why children are so attracted to fairy tales, because they depict the world
exactly as children imagine it (Purić and Maričić 2010).
For example, analysing the fairy tale Goldilocks and the Three Bears as part
of language development helps develop the skills of listening, speaking,
retelling, description, vocabulary enrichment, etc. When applied to mathe-
matics education, the said fairy tale creates a realistic and rich context which,
when coupled with didactic material, creates a basis for developing the con-
cept of number three, but also proportional relationships (big–small), seri-
ation by size, etc. There are three bears, three chairs, three tables, etc. in the
fairy tale. These elements are presented with by means of didactic mate-
rial and they help children create a clear mental image of number three. In
addition, the fairy tale can be used as a starting point for introducing pro-
portional relationships. Three bears are of different size, as well as their beds,
chairs, food bowls, clothes, etc. Children will identify these separate elements
and compare them to each other.
Numerous studies outline the benefits of this type of integrated mathe-
matics education which utilises literary content for children in preschool ed-
ucation (Welsh et al. 2010; Ojose 2008; Purpura et al. 2011; Rosen and Hoffman
2009; Skoumpourdi and Mpakopoulou 2011; Van den Heuvel-Panhuizen and
Elia 2011; Van den Heuvel-Panhuizen, Elia, and Robitzch 2016). Even a picture
book as the first book in the child’s life offers countless possibilities for inte-
grated teaching aimed at developing language and mathematical skills. The
fact these books contain little to no text helps teachers motivate their stu-
dents to upgrade and complement the image/images by inventing a story
of their own, which stimulates and channels their language development. In
addition, cognitive context of the picture book is familiar to the child, so he
will have no trouble identifying with it.
This way, the child will learn spontaneously, because reading the text from
a picture book represents a natural continuation of learning through play
which was a dominant teaching method during preschool education (Mar-
ičićm Maksimović, and Stakić 2018, 400). On the other hand, when it comes
to the development of mathematical skills, research results confirm a three-
month reading program which uses picture books containing mathematical
content has positive effects on the improvement of children’s math perfor-
mance even when no additional mathematical activities are involved (Van
den Heuvel-Panhuizen, Elia, and Robitzch 2016).
Given the opinion stated above, i. e. that all literary forms can be used
299
