Should students be taught to count on their fingers? Today I am excited to bring you an interview with Catherine Thevenot. Catherine is a researcher at the Institute of Psychology at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland. Her work focuses on cognitive development, particularly in the area of numerical cognition and arithmetic skills in children. One of her notable studies involves the impact of finger counting on young children’s math performance. Catherine’s research has shown that training children to use their fingers for counting can significantly improve their arithmetic skills, demonstrating a strong link between finger use and numerical understanding. Her work has provided valuable insights into effective teaching strategies for early math education.
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I listened to the podcast about finger counting and loved it. The question I have is does the same go for kids using number lines or number paths to help with adding and subtracting in the lower grades? Or should we put those away and just encourage finger counting? Thanks!
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