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ERIC Number: EJ1307366
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021
Pages: 8
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1054-0040
EISSN: N/A
Learning to Predict: Introducing Young Children to Probability
Jensen, Marc
Montessori Life: A Publication of the American Montessori Society, v33 n1 p36-43 Spr 2021
Many people are unduly intimidated by the thought of teaching probability. At its most basic level, probability revolves around being able to predict whether a future event is certain, possible, or impossible. These basic concepts grow and develop into a more mathematical understanding of likelihood as children learn to quantify that understanding. Probability concepts can be challenging for children because they are often encountered in a way that requires a functional application of number--the ability to use and compare numbers for meaning rather than just being able to read them. Thinking about probability can also mean framing the likelihood of an event in terms of imagining multiple iterations of the same action with different potential outcomes, which is very different than just knowing that one outcome is more likely than another. By age 4 or 5, most children can apply concepts of likelihood to some practical questions of future events in their lives. Some things are more likely than others, and children know it. Games are a place where children encounter probabilistic events in ways that generate extremely complex outcomes, and it may be harder to predict whether something is truly a pattern or just a false pattern, or likely or unlikely. In this article, the author introduces young children to probability through games.
American Montessori Society. 281 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10010-6102. Tel: 212-358-1250; Fax: 212-358-1256; e-mail: info@amshq.org; Web site: https://amshq.org/Educators/Membership/Montessori-Life
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Elementary Education; Kindergarten; Primary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A