The Effect of the Integrated Mathematics Lessons with Children’s Literature on the Fifth Grade Students’ Place Value Understanding

Abstract

The comprehension of the place value concept which is based on the grouping of numbers in accordance with distinct systems is not so easy. One of the sources that may contribute to the comprehension of the place value and making connections with daily life is children’s books. The effects of several tools on the comprehension of the place value have been analyzed in the literature, but the effects of children’s books in this regard have not been so frequent. Therefore, the aim of the study is to analyze the effects of the fifth-grade mathematics lessons integrated with children’s books on the students’ place value understanding. The study was designed through the case study which is a kind of the qualitative research methods. The participants of the study are 32 fifth grade students. The data of the study were obtained through the place value test, the place value achievement test, and an interview form. The findings indicate that the mathematics lessons integrated with the picture books have positive effects on the fifth-grade students’ comprehension and achievement about the place value. Also, the students participated in the study mostly reported positive views about the mathematics lessons integrated with the children’s books.

Effects of using picture books in mathematics teaching and learning: A systematic literature review from 2000–2022

“…A total of 11 studies (Björklund & Palmér, 2020, 2022; Can et al, 2020; Capraro & Capraro, 2006; den Heuvel‐Panhuizen et al, 2009; Durmaz & Miçooğullari, 2021; Edelman, 2017; Ompok et al, 2018; Rathé et al, 2018; Van den Heuvel‐Panhuizen & Elia, 2011; Wikholm & Aerila, 2017) presented different approaches to the use of picture books in mathematics instruction. The findings across these studies revealed that most teachers used picture books during the introductory and practical parts of mathematics lessons (Can et al, 2020; Edelman, 2017).…”

“…After that, some teachers would provide mathematical guidance to the students, such as posing open‐ended questions to ease and deepen their understanding (Björklund & Palmér, 2020; den Heuvel‐Panhuizen et al, 2009; Van den Heuvel‐Panhuizen & Elia, 2011). In other words, the picture book stories not only act as new teaching content to motivate students (Wikholm & Aerila, 2017), but also pave the way for students to further develop their mathematical concepts or skills (Durmaz & Miçooğullari, 2021). By allowing students to read the picture books aloud, they could learn how to learn mathematical knowledge independently, thus benefiting their learning at a later stage (Can et al, 2020).…”

“…Applying picture books in mathematics instruction often positively improves student perceptions toward mathematics, contributing to a positive learning attitude (Durmaz & Miçooğullari, 2021) and reducing mathematical anxiety (Ompok et al, 2018). As picture books are a common learning tool during the pre-school or early childhood period, books themed with mathematical concepts and instruction could bridge the mathematic educa-tion of young learners using a learning avenue with which they are already familiar.…”

“…Thus, an early educational stage-especially pre-school-is an ideal period for practising such integration. Conversely, when students gradually move through the stages-in particular, for Grade 5 onwards-their interest in stories and picture books may dwindle significantly (Durmaz & Miçooğullari, 2021).…”

Çocuk Edebiyatıyla Bütünleştirilmiş Matematik Dersinin Problem Çözme Tutumuna, Matematiksel İlişkilendirmeye ve Matematik Özyeterliğine Etkisi

“…Mathematics teaching and children's literature integration, where language-related skills such as reading are employed, are one of the approaches that can be used for this purpose. Because research shows that integrated mathematics courses have a positive effect on mathematics success (Boebinger, 2015;Durmaz & Miçooğulları, 2021;Green, 2013;Lemonidis & Kaiafa, 2019;Munro, 2013;Stone, 2016;Thomas & Feng, 2015), literary success (Boebinger, 2015), geometry success/skills (Capraro & Capraro, 2006;Hong, 1996), interest/motivation in mathematics (Hong, 1996;Jennings et al, 1992;Mink & Fraser, 2005), attitude towards mathematics (Munro, 2013), problem-solving (Cankoy, 2011;Lynch, 2006), critical thinking, procedural-conceptual knowledge (Huffman, 2012), using mathematics in daily life (Moore, 2008;Munro, 2013;Young, 2001), behavioral problems (Whitney, 2011), and reducing mathematical anxiety (Green, 2013). However, some studies have also found that such integration has no effect on some issues such as attitudes towards problems (White, 2003), mathematical success (Hassinger-Das et al, 2015), attitude towards mathematics (Stone, 2016), and reducing of behavioral disorders (Whitney et al, 2017).…”