Counting vs. Reciting

New research from the University of Missouri suggests that reciting numbers is not enough to prepare children for math success in elementary school.  The research indicates that counting, which requires assigning numerical values to objects in chronological order, is more important for helping preschoolers acquire math skills.

“'Reciting means saying the numbers from memory in chronological order, whereas counting involves understanding that each item in the set is counted once and that the last number stated is the amount for the entire set,' said Louis Manfra, an assistant professor in Missouri University's Department of Human Development and Family Studies.  'When children are just reciting, they’re basically repeating what seems like a memorized sentence.  When they’re counting, they’re performing a more cognitive activity in which they’re associating a one-to-one correspondence with the object and the number to represent a quantity.'”

Contributed by Zvia Dover

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