QUESTION 10: Experience and assessment
In the 'Dimensions' chapter of Lynn Aurthur Steen’s book 'On the Shoulders of Giants', great emphasis is placed on giving young children experience of playing constructively with 3-D models (such as those that Froebel gave as ‘gifts’ to his learners) so that when they meet volume, circumference etc, the embedded relationships are second nature to them. It seems like a sensible idea, but is there any research evidence that early exposure to sophisticated concepts accelerates later understanding?
Ref:
Steen L A (ed) (1990), On the Shoulders of Giants: New approaches to Numeracy