The home literacy and numeracy environment in preschool: Cross-domain relations of parent-child practices and child outcomes

The role of parents' ability mindsets in parent-child interactions during math and reading activities

Parents can be instrumental in promoting young children's early mathematics and literacy skills. However, differences in parents' beliefs can influence their behavior during parent-child interactions. We examined how parental beliefs about the fixedness of children's math and reading abilities shape their interactions with their 4- and 5-year-old children during an educational activity. Parental beliefs about children's abilities were manipulated using "articles" indicating that academic ability is fixed in one domain (e.g., math) but malleable in another (e.g., reading). We then investigated differences in parental unconstructive (performance-oriented and controlling) and constructive (mastery-oriented and autonomy-supportive) involvement across conditions. We also examined whether parent behavior differed depending on the type of educational material parents were told the activity tapped into. The results showed that parents who were induced to have a fixed mindset about reading took full control of the reading activity more often than those who were induced to have a growth mindset about reading, but not math. Parents did not differ in constructive involvement between mindset induction conditions in either domain. We also found that parent autonomy behavior in math differed depending on parents' general theory of intelligence beliefs. Overall, we found some evidence that parents' beliefs about the malleability of their children's ability in a specific domain affected their behaviors in that domain.

Exploring the influence of the home literacy environment on early literacy and vocabulary skills in Korean-English bilingual children

Studies have emphasized the significance of maintaining a heritage language for various reasons such as the establishment of linguistic and cultural identity, as well as socio-emotional development. Despite the crucial role that literacy development in a heritage language plays in language preservation, there is a scant research that explores the impact of home literacy environment and literacy development in children with a heritage language. This study aimed to examine the home literacy environment and literacy-related skills in 4-to 5-year-old Korean-English bilingual children living in an English-speaking country, Australia, whose heritage language is Korean, and to investigate the relationships among the home literacy environment factors and the child-internal literacy-related skills. The study employed parental questionnaires and video analyses of parent-child shared book reading sessions to assess the Korean and English home literacy environment. Children's early literacy skills in Korean and English, along with their Korean, English, and conceptual vocabulary skills, were measured as literacy-related skills. The findings indicated that parents utilized an indirect approach for Korean literacy practices, in contrast to a more direct and explicit method for English literacy practices. However, active and direct literacy practices were found to be essential for Korean early literacy development, while indirect methods are sufficient for English early literacy skills. Moreover, the availability of abundant Korean literacy resources at home had a positive impact on the development of Korean and English, as well as conceptual vocabulary skills. In conclusion, this study underscores the importance of providing a robust literacy environment in a heritage language in bilingual families to promote language proficiency in both the heritage language and the dominant social language, while also supporting the development of conceptual language skills.

Longitudinal associations between parental mathematics anxiety and attitudes and young children's mathematics attainment

The associations between parental mathematics anxiety and attitudes and children's mathematics attainment in early primary school were explored. Initially, parents of preschool children (Mage = 3;11 [years;months]) completed a questionnaire indexing parental mathematics anxiety and attitudes and the frequency of preschool home number experiences. The children completed mathematics assessments in their first year (n = 231, Mage = 5;2) and second year (n = 119, Mage = 6;3) of schooling and a mathematics anxiety questionnaire in their third year of schooling (n = 119, Mage = 6;7). A questionnaire indexing the frequency of primary school home number experiences was completed by 119 of the parents in their children's second year of schooling (Mage = 6;0). All indices of parental mathematics anxiety and attitudes predicted children's mathematics attainment in their first school year. These associations were independent of parental mathematics attainment and were not mediated by the frequency of preschool home number experiences. Furthermore, the positive association between preschool home number experiences and children's mathematics attainment was not weaker in the context of high parental mathematics anxiety or negative parental mathematics attitudes. One index of parental mathematics attitudes predicted children's mathematics attainment in their second school year, but this association was not significant when prior attainment was controlled. There was a stronger association between maternal mathematics anxiety and girls' attainment versus boys' attainment. Parental mathematics anxiety did not predict children's mathematics anxiety. The findings suggest that children whose parents have high mathematics anxiety or negative mathematics attitudes are more likely to have lower mathematics attainment in their first year of school. However, the mechanism underpinning this association is not yet established.

Investigating associations between parent engagement and toddlers' mathematics performance

Early mathematics skills relate to later mathematics achievement and educational attainment, which in turn predict career choice, income, health and financial decision-making. Critically, large differences exist among children in early mathematics performance, with parental mathematics engagement being a key predictor. However, most prior work has examined mothers' mathematics engagement with their preschool- and school-aged children. In this Registered Report, we tested concurrent associations between mothers' and fathers' engagement in mathematics activities with their 2- to 3-year-old toddlers and children's mathematics performance. Mothers and fathers did not differ in their engagement in mathematics activities, and both parents' mathematics engagement related to toddlers' mathematics skills. Fathers' mathematics engagement was associated with toddlers' number and mathematics language skills, but not their spatial skills. Mothers' mathematics engagement was only associated with toddlers' mathematics language skills. Critically, associations may be domain-specific, as parents' literacy engagement did not relate to measures of mathematics performance above their mathematics engagement. Mothers' and fathers' mathematics activities uniquely relate to toddlers' developing mathematics skills, and future work on the nuances of these associations is needed.

Developing and validating a measure of parental knowledge about early math development

Parents' knowledge about the math skills that most preschool-aged children can develop might be an important component of the Home Math Environment (HME) as it might shape their math beliefs and efforts to support their preschoolers' math development. This study aimed to systematically develop measures of parents' knowledge about two critical early math topics, numeracy, and patterning, across five studies conducted with a total of 616 U.S. parents of 3- to 5-year-olds (66% mothers, 54% sons, 73% White, 60% college-educated). Parents were recruited via CloudResearch or a university database. Study 1 focused on item generation to revise a previous measure to capture a wider set of children's early math skills and analysis of the psychometric properties of the measure after it was completed by 161 parents via a survey. Study 2 included an analysis of a new sample of parents (n = 21) who responded to the measures twice across two weeks to explore test-retest reliability. The measures were iteratively revised, administered to new samples, and analyzed in Studies 3 (n = 45), 4 (n = 46), and 5 (n = 344). The measures demonstrated adequate internal consistency and validity (construct, convergent, and discriminant) in Study 5 such as being positively related to parents' numeracy and patterning beliefs about their children. Overall, the newly developed measures satisfy standards for the development of an adequate measure and can be used to better understand what parents know about early math development and how this relates to the HME that they facilitate.

Relationship Between Numeracy and Vocabulary Skills in Indonesian Preschool Children and the Impacts of Learning Environments

Although many studies on early childhood have been conducted, there is still a need for further research on numeracy and vocabulary skills, particularly in Indonesia. This research aims to confirm the correlation between numeracy and vocabulary skills in preschool children and to disentangle the effects of environmental factors on both numeracy and vocabulary skills. This research was conducted at Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) in the Jatinangor district and followed the principle of simple random sampling. Children were given numeracy and vocabulary tests, parents were asked to fill out a questionnaire about sociodemographic aspects and the learning environment in their homes, and teachers were asked to fill out a questionnaire about preschool activities concerning numeracy and vocabulary. Data were analyzed using a structural equation model with numeracy and vocabulary as outcome variables. Covariates such as age, gender and social status were also included in the model. The results of this study show that numeracy is closely linked to vocabulary skills and that only a specific preschool activity can explain the variance of numeracy. On the other hand, both home numeracy activities and a specific preschool literacy activity are significant predictors of vocabulary skills.

The home numeracy environment and children's math skills: The moderating role of parents' math anxiety

Evidence suggests that parents' math anxiety moderates the association between parents' help in mathematics homework and first graders' mathematics skills. Understanding whether similar associations are evident in younger children, in regard to the home numeracy environment (HNE) is essential, given that early math skills are strong predictors of later academic outcomes, and children's skills prior to kindergarten are fostered principally by their parents. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the association and interaction between the HNE and parents' math anxiety related to preschool children's numeracy performance. Participants were 121 parent-child dyads. Results from hierarchical multiple regression models demonstrated that parents' math anxiety and the HNE, included as separate predictors of children's math skills, were not statistically significant. However, the interaction between HNE and parents' math anxiety was statistically significant, such that the positive association between HNE and children's numeracy skills emerged when parents felt less anxious about math. These findings highlight the importance of accounting for parents' math anxiety when exploring the home influences on children's numeracy skills.

Mathematikspiele in der Familie

Zusammenfassung. Mathematische Aktivitäten im Familienkontext hängen mit frühen mathematischen Kompetenzen zusammen. Die Erfassung der Home Numeracy Environment (HNE) mittels Fragebögen birgt aber die Gefahr der sozial erwünschten Beantwortung. Diese Studie stellt den mathematischen Titelrekognitionstest für das Kindergartenalter (TRT-Mathe-K) vor, durch den sozial erwünschtes Antwortverhalten begrenzt wird. In einer Pilotstudie mit N = 76 Eltern wurde eine Liste von 87 mathematischen und nicht-mathematischen Kinderspielen hinsichtlich ihrer Bekanntheit abgefragt. Die Berücksichtigung der Kinderspieltitel mit einer Trennschärfe > .2 führte zur Entwicklung zweier Parallelversionen des TRT-Mathe-K. In einer Studie mit N = 193 Familien wurden Kindergartenkinder hinsichtlich nonverbaler Intelligenz, Sprachfähigkeit und früher mathematischer Kompetenzen untersucht und zum familiären Hintergrund befragt. Der TRT-Mathe-K erwies sich als ein ökonomisches, reliables und valides Messinstrument für die Nutzung von mathematischen Kinderspielen in der HNE, das signifikant mit frühen mathematischen Kompetenzen korrelierte und diese auch unter Berücksichtigung von Kontrollvariablen vorhersagen konnte.

The influence of home environmental factors on kindergarten children's addition strategy use

Young children vary widely in their levels of math knowledge, their abilities to solve math problems, and the strategies they use to solve math problems. As much of later math builds on children's early understanding of basic math facts and problem-solving strategies, understanding influences on children's early problem solving is important. Few studies, however, have examined the home environment in relation to children's strategy use during arithmetic problems. We examined how both structural characteristics of children's home environments, such as socioeconomic status (SES), as well as the learning environment, such as engagement in math and literacy activities at home, related to their use of problem-solving strategies for numerical addition problems. Kindergarten children from diverse backgrounds completed a measure of addition problem solving and strategy use, including simple and complex numerical problems. Strategies were coded based on a combination of accuracy and strategy sophistication, with higher scores indicating problems solved correctly with more sophisticated strategies. Parents completed a home activities questionnaire, reporting the frequency with which they and their child had engaged in math and literacy activities at home over the past month. An exploratory factor analysis identified three components of the home activities - a basic activities factor, an advanced math activities factor, and a literacy activities factor. Findings indicated that SES related to children's strategy sophistication, and frequency of engaging in advanced math and literacy activities at home predicted strategy sophistication, however, engaging in activities at home did not moderate the relations between SES and strategy sophistication. This suggests that family engagement in activities at home may promote early arithmetic skills, and that the role of home environmental characteristics should be considered in children's arithmetic strategy use and performance over development.

Testing the validity of a self-report scale, author recognition test, and book counting as measures of lifetime exposure to print fiction

We report a study testing the validity of the three most commonly used indicators of lifetime exposure to print fiction, namely a self-report scale, an author recognition test (ART), and book counting, in a sample of older adults (N=306; Mage = 59.29 years, SDage = 7.01). Convergent validity of the self-report scale and book counting was assessed through correlations with the fiction sub-score of the ART; divergent validity of these two indicators was examined via correlations with the non-fiction sub-score of that ART. We also assessed criterion-related validity by testing the degree to which each of the three indicators predicted participants' performance in a vocabulary test. The self-report scale and book counting were significantly more positively associated with the ART fiction sub-score than the ART non-fiction sub-score. Regression analyses, controlling for gender and non-fiction exposure, revealed that the ART fiction sub-score had the highest explanatory power among all indicators under investigation for predicting vocabulary test performance. The present results suggest that only ARTs may have satisfactory levels of both construct and criterion-related validity. Recommendations for the assessment of fiction exposure and future directions are discussed.

Predicting grade school scientific literacy from aspects of the early home science environment

Fostering scientific literacy has become an increasingly salient goal as evidence accumulates regarding the early emergence of foundational skills and knowledge in this domain, as well as their relation to long-term success and engagement. Despite the potential that the home context has for nurturing early scientific literacy, research specifying its role has been limited. In this longitudinal study, we examined associations between children's early science-related experiences at home and their subsequent scientific literacy. Following on our previous work, we specifically considered parent causal-explanatory talk, as well as the degree to which parents facilitate access to science-related materials and experiences. A group of 153 children from diverse backgrounds were evaluated across 5 annual waves of data collection from preschool entry (M _age = 3.41) through first grade (M _age = 7.92). Results demonstrate that parent invitations for children to explain causal phenomena had strong concurrent relations to scientific literacy but showed little relation to subsequent literacy. In contrast, the broader home science environment at preschool entry, particularly in the form of exposure to science-related activities, predicted scientific literacy over the next 4 years. The directionality and specificity of these relations were clarified through the inclusion of measures of cognitive and broader home experiences as controls in regression analyses. Overall, our investigation revealed that exposure to science-related input provided by parents has particularly powerful potential for shaping scientific literacy when children are very young. Implications for parent-focused interventions that promote science literacy are discussed.

With a little help from our pediatrician: An intervention to promote mathematics-related home activities through regular well-child visits

Introduction

Children's involvement in mathematics-related activities in the home environment is associated with the development of their early numeracy over the preschool years. Intervention studies to promote parents' awareness and provision of mathematics-related home activities are however scant. In this study we developed and tested the effectiveness of a non-intensive intervention program delivered by community pediatricians to promote mathematics-related activities in the home environment.

Methods

Parents of 204 Italian children were invited to report on the frequency of mathematics-related home activities when children attended the first preschool year (3 years, 8 months of age on average) and, subsequently, the third preschool year (5 years, 6 months of age on average). At both waves, children were also assessed on their early numeracy. In occasion of the routine well-child visit at age 5, parents who were randomly allocated to the intervention condition (vs. a business-as-usual control condition) received guidance on age-appropriate home mathematics-related practices to sustain children's numerical development.

Results

Results revealed that parents in the intervention group improved their provision of home mathematics-related activities at the post-intervention assessment (relative to baseline) to a greater extent than parents in the control condition. No effect was observed on children's early numeracy.

Discussion

Overall, results are promising in suggesting that community pediatricians may be a resource to promote home mathematics-related activities though non-intensive low-cost interventions.

Latina Mothers' Cultural Experiences, Beliefs, and Attitudes May Influence Children's Math Learning

Drawing from a qualitative approach and through individual pláticas (processes of co-constructing knowledge through dialogue) as a linguistic and cultural framework, this work explored informal contextual factors valued by Spanish-speaking Latina mothers of children, three to five years of age and enrolled in a nonprofit California preschool. Results revealed that Latina mothers have cultural forms of knowledge which impact their children's educational experiences and engage in direct and indirect numeracy environments. While personal math experiences and home practices differed, Latina mothers experience and navigate their children's learning based on sociocultural aspects, influencing how they support their children's math learning. This study drew from sociocultural learning theories that value learning embedded within meaningful learning experiences. Patterns of family learning have several implications for educational practice, especially for Latine families whose parent participation is typically not as visible as White American English-speaking parents.

Home science interactions and their relation to children's science core knowledge in preschool

A limited body of work has examined the nature and scope of young children's science-related activities outside of the school context, and thus there is little understanding or consensus regarding what comprises the home science environment (HSE; e.g., interactions, activities, resources) and how specific factors of the HSE relate to children's science performance. The two primary goals of this study were to (a) examine the factor structure of a parent-report measure of home science interactions and (b) evaluate how these factors relate to the science core knowledge of young children from families with low incomes. A total of 125 families with children aged 3 to 5 years (52 girls) participated in the study. Children were assessed on a measure of science core knowledge, and parents completed a brief questionnaire on their home science interactions that included questions pertaining to both home science disciplinary core idea (DCI) engagement and home science and engineering practice (SEP) engagement. Findings revealed that although separating home science interactions into distinct DCI and SEP factors represented the data well, the best overall representation of home science interactions was a one-factor model that included only home DCI engagement items. In addition, home DCI engagement was significantly predictive of children's science core knowledge over and above a large group of covariates, including children's age, race/ethnicity, sex, and performance on math, executive function, and vocabulary tasks as well as their parents' education.

Inequality begets inequality: Income inequality and socioeconomic achievement gradients across the United States

Social scientists have found income inequality is associated with an array of health and social problems, however the implications of income inequality for education are the subject of debate. Across 100 different areas (individual counties or collections of small counties) of the United States, we investigated how income inequality was associated with 1) average mathematics and reading achievement and 2) socioeconomic gradients in mathematics and reading achievement. Using data from the Kindergarten to Fifth Grade waves of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2011 (ECLS-K 2011), we found areas of the United States with higher income inequality had lower average achievement in mathematics and a larger socioeconomic achievement gradient in reading. In further analyses, we investigated what characteristics of school and home environments mediated the relationship between income inequality and academic achievement. We found the association between income inequality and academic achievement was partly explained by the clustering of disadvantaged students in high poverty schools/districts and more intensive parenting practices among high SES parents (structured activity participation, educational expectations).

Parental math input is not uniformly beneficial for young children: The moderating role of inhibitory control

Recent work has stressed the importance of considering child-level propensities and environmental opportunities when studying early math achievement; however, few studies investigate the interaction between these factors. This study examined whether children's inhibitory control moderates the association between parental math input and children's math performance. Parental math input via number talk and parent-reported frequencies of math activities were measured in 123 children (M age = 3.9 years) and one of their parents. High levels of parent number talk were associated with higher math achievement among children with higher inhibitory control. This association was not seen in children with lower inhibitory control, for children's vocabulary as the outcome measure, or for parents' overall talk or parent-reported math activities as the opportunity measures. Thus, children may differentially benefit from parental math input depending on their cognitive abilities and this association is specific to parental number talk and children's math abilities.

Associations Between Children’s Numeracy Competencies, Mothers’ and Fathers’ Mathematical Beliefs, and Numeracy Activities at Home

Children’s numeracy competencies are not only relevant for their academic achievement, but also later in life. The development of early numeracy competencies is influenced by children’s learning environment. Here, the home numeracy environment (HNE) and parent’s own beliefs about mathematics play an important role for children’s numeracy competencies. However, only a few studies explicitly tested these associations separately for mothers and fathers. In our study, we assessed mothers’ and fathers’ mathematical gender stereotypes, self-efficacy and their beliefs on the importance of mathematical activities at home, and tested their associations with parents’ numeracy activities and children’s numeracy competencies in a sample of N = 160 children (n = 80 girls) with an average age of M = 59.15 months (SD = 4.05). Both, fathers and mothers regarded boys as being more competent in mathematics than girls. Fathers when compared to mothers reported a greater mathematical self-efficacy. Further, only mothers’ self-efficacy was associated with the frequency of numeracy activities with the study child. In contrast, only fathers’ beliefs on the importance of mathematics was associated with their numeracy activities which, in turn, predicted children’s numeracy competencies. However, the non-invariant constructs and varying results lead to the question whether a revision of existing scales assessing parental beliefs and home numeracy activities is needed to investigate differences of mothers and fathers and their potential associations with children’s numeracy outcomes.

Deal Me in: Playing Cards in the Home to Learn Math

Recent meta-analyses have demonstrated a significant association between children’s early math achievement and their experiences with math at home, including their caregivers’ talk about math. However, few studies have investigated the relations between caregiver math talk and children’s learning with experimental designs. Eighty-six children (M = 5.0 years) and their caregivers were randomly assigned to play either a numeracy or a shape card game at home for six weeks. Data were collected on children’s number and shape knowledge and families’ math talk during gameplay. There was substantial participant attrition (42% did not return completed materials), however, both an intent-to-treat analysis of the sample that received study materials and a subgroup analysis of study completers showed that children who played the shape game significantly improved their shape naming and matching skills relative to children who played the number game. Children who played the number game did not significantly improve their numerical skills relative to children who played the shape game. Mathematical talk during gameplay varied between families but was correlated over time within families. Caregivers’ and children’s talk about matching cards by shape or color predicted children’s learning from the shape game. The results suggest that despite receiving uniform instructions and materials, there was significant variability in children’s home math experiences that predicted their learning from the card game.

Conceptualizing the factor structure of parents' math anxiety and associations with children's mathematics skills

There is a growing literature examining the association between parents' math anxiety and children's mathematics skills. Previous research has considered parents' math anxiety as a unidimensional construct that primarily focused on parents' experiences doing mathematics themselves. However, this research did not account for parents' experiences when doing mathematics with their children. Thus, there were two goals of the present study: (1) to identify the structure of parents' math anxiety when considering context-dependent situations, and (2) to determine whether parental math anxiety was related to children's early numeracy skills. We conducted a series of confirmatory factor analyses using a sample of 155 preschool children (M_age  = 4.20 years, SD = 0.71; 51% female). The best fitting model of parents' math anxiety was a bifactor model, suggesting that parents' math anxiety was best conceptualized as a multidimensional construct. However, structural equation models showed parent math anxiety was not a significant predictor of children's numeracy performance. These findings provide a foundation for understanding parents' math anxiety as multidimensional and raise questions about potential mechanisms that may explain prior work finding mixed relations between math anxiety and children's numeracy performance.

The home math environment and math achievement: A meta-analysis

Mathematical thinking is in high demand in the global market, but approximately 6 percent of school-age children across the globe experience math difficulties (Shalev et al., 2000). The home math environment (HME), which includes all math-related activities, attitudes, beliefs, expectations, and utterances in the home, may be associated with children's math development. To examine the relation between the HME and children's math abilities, a preregistered meta-analysis was conducted to estimate the average weighted correlation coefficient (r) between the HME and children's math achievement and how potential moderators (i.e., assessment, study, and sample features) might contribute to study heterogeneity. A multilevel correlated effects model using 631 effect sizes from 64 quantitative studies comprising 68 independent samples found a positive, statistically significant average weighted correlation of r = .13 (SE = .02, p < .001). Our combined sensitivity analyses showed that the present findings were robust and that the sample of studies has evidential value. A number of assessment, study, and sample characteristics contributed to study heterogeneity, showing that no single feature of HME research was driving the large between-study differences found for the association between the HME and children's math achievement. These findings indicate that children's environments and interactions related to their learning are supported in the specific context of math learning. Our results also show that the HME represents a setting in which children learn about math through social interactions with their caregivers (Vygotsky, 1978) and what they learn depends on the influence of many levels of environmental input (Bronfenbrenner, 1979) and the specificity of input children receive (Bornstein, 2002). (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Home Literacy and Numeracy Interact and Mediate the Relationship Between Socio-Economic Status and Early Linguistic and Numeracy Skills in Preschoolers

This longitudinal study aimed at evaluating the relationships between socio-economic status (SES) and early literacy and numeracy skills, testing home literacy and home numeracy as mediators. It also investigated the interaction of home literacy and numeracy on early literacy and numeracy skills. The study involved 310 preschool children attending the second and the third year. Parents completed questionnaires on SES and home literacy and numeracy. In the first session, children were administered language measures and non-symbolic numeracy skills and, in the second wave, tasks of early literacy and symbolic numeracy skills. Structural equation models (SEMs) showed that SES was predictive of early language and literacy skills and non-symbolic numeracy skills. In addition, home literacy and home numeracy significantly mediated the relationships between SES and children’s skills. Finally, home literacy and home numeracy showed a significant negative interaction on symbolic numeracy skills. Implications for research and educational settings are discussed.

Cross- and Within-Domain Associations of Early Reading and Mathematical Skills: Changes Across the Preschool Years

Existing research has mainly examined the role of cognitive correlates of early reading and mathematics from a stationary perspective that does not consider how these skills unfold and interact over time. This approach constraints the interpretation of cross-domain associations and the specificity of domain-specific covariates. In this study, we disentangle the role of these predictors and investigate cross-domain associations between reading, math, and two related domain-specific predictors (phonological awareness and fluency with number sets) over the kindergarten years (n=512, Mage=54months, SDage=3.5, 52% females). Results reveal that the overlap between reading and math skills changes over development. Reciprocal associations between reading and math abilities are observed at earlier stages; then, reading abilities become the lead force. Findings also show that phonological awareness and fluency with number sets are domain-specific predictors that do not contribute to cross-domain gains in academic skills. Indeed, there is a trend for domain-specific skills to be more strongly related to achievement at the beginning of formal education than at the beginning of kindergarten, which suggests an increasing differentiation of domains over the kindergarten years. Such findings have implications for the timing and nature of interventions that aim to support children's reading and mathematical development.

Relations between Subdomains of Home Math Activities and Corresponding Math Skills in 4-Year-Old Children

Most studies on the subject have investigated relations between home math activities and child math skills, without paying much attention to the specific skills that such activities foster and their alignment with children’s math assessments. The present study examined specific relations between subdomains of home math activities and children’s corresponding math skills (e.g., home counting/cardinality activities related to children’s counting/cardinality skills). Participants were 78 mostly middle-income, White parents and their four-year-old children (M age = 53.19 months; 45% girls). Parents completed a 24-item survey about the frequency of home activities supporting five subdomains of math: counting/cardinality, set comparison, number identification, adding/subtracting, and patterning. Children’s skills in these same five subdomains were assessed using the Preschool Early Numeracy Scale (PENS) and the Early Patterning Assessment. Specific relations were observed in set comparison, adding/subtracting, and patterning, such that higher frequency of home activities in these subdomains related to advanced child math skills in the corresponding subdomains. No specific relations were found in counting/cardinality and number identification. Overall home math activities averaged across the five math subdomains positively related to children’s overall math skills. Findings highlight the importance of engagement in specific math activities in the home environment and their significance for corresponding child math development.

The relation between home numeracy practices and a variety of math skills in elementary school children

A growing number of studies suggest that the frequency of numeracy experiences that parents provide at home may relate to children's mathematical development. However, the relation between home numeracy practices and children's numerical skills is complex and might depend upon both the type and difficulty of activities, as well as the type of math skills. Studies have also argued that this relation may be driven by factors that are not systematically controlled for in the literature, including socio-economic status (SES), parental math skills and children's IQ. Finally, as most prior studies have focused on preschoolers, it remains unclear to what extent there remains a relation between the home numeracy environment and math skills when children are in elementary school. In the present study, we tested an extensive range of math skills in 66 8-year-olds, including non-symbolic quantity processing, symbolic number understanding, transcoding, counting, and mental arithmetic. We also asked parents to complete a questionnaire about their SES, academic expectations, academic attitudes, and the numeracy practices that they provide at home. Finally, we measured their arithmetic fluency as a proxy for parental math skills. Over and above differences in socio-economic status, parental arithmetic fluency, child's IQ, and time spent with the child, we found a positive relation between the frequency of formal numeracy practices that were at or above grade level and two separate measures of mental arithmetic. We further found that the frequency of these advanced formal numeracy practices was related to parents' academic expectations. Therefore, our study shows that home numeracy experiences predict arithmetic skills in elementary school children, but only when those activities are formal and sufficiently challenging for children.

Home activities and cognitive skills in relation to early literacy and numeracy: testing a multifactorial model in preschoolers

The aim of the present study was to test environmental and cognitive variables as possible cross-domain predictors of early literacy and numeracy skills. One hundred forty-eight preschool children (mean age = 64.36 months ± 3.33) were enrolled in the study. The battery included a home literacy and home numeracy questionnaire, measures and phonological and visuo-spatial working memory, tasks tapping response inhibition, and predictors of literacy (vocabulary, phonological awareness, letter knowledge) and numeracy (magnitude comparison, number knowledge) skills. The structural equation model indicated that verbal working memory and, to a lesser extent, inhibition represented cross-domain predictors, whereas home numeracy activities and visuo-spatial working memory explained additional variance only for early numeracy skills. Implications for parents and educators are discussed.

Home Learning Environments of Children in Mexico in Relation to Socioeconomic Status

We explored the home learning environments of 173 Mexican preschool children (aged 3-6 years) in relation to their numeracy performance. Parents indicated the frequency of their formal home numeracy and literacy activities, and their academic expectations for children's numeracy and literacy performance. Children completed measures of early numeracy skills. Mexican parent-child dyads from families with either high- or low-socioeconomic status (SES) participated. Low-SES parents (n = 99) reported higher numeracy expectations than high-SES parents (n = 74), but similar frequency of home numeracy activities. In contrast, high-SES parents reported higher frequency of literacy activities. Path analyses showed that operational (i.e., advanced) numeracy activities were positively related to children's numeracy skills in the high- but not in the low-SES group. These findings improve the understanding of the role of the home environment in different contexts and provide some insights into the sources of the variable patterns of relations between home learning activities and children's numeracy outcomes. They also suggest that SES is a critical factor to consider in research on children's home numeracy experiences.

Home Literacy and Numeracy Environments in Asia

The home learning environment includes what parents do to stimulate children’s literacy and numeracy skills at home and their overall beliefs and attitudes about children’s learning. The home literacy and numeracy environments are two of the most widely discussed aspects of the home learning environment, and past studies have identified how socioeconomic status and parents’ own abilities and interest in these domains also play a part in shaping children’s learning experiences. However, these studies are mostly from the West, and there has been little focus on the situation of homes in Asia, which captures a large geographical area and a wide diversity of social, ethnic, and linguistic groups. Therefore, this paper aims to review extant studies on the home literacy and numeracy environments that have been conducted in different parts of Asia, such as China, the Philippines, India, Iran, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. Specifically, we explore how parents in these places perceive their roles in children’s early literacy and numeracy development, the methods they regard as effective for promoting young children’s literacy and numeracy learning, and the frequency with which they engage their young children in different types of home literacy and numeracy activities. We also examine studies on the relationship of the home literacy and numeracy environment with young children’s developmental outcomes, and the effectiveness of parent training programs to improve the home literacy and numeracy environments in these contexts. By examining potential trends in findings obtained in different geographical areas, we can initially determine whether there are characteristics that are potentially unique to contexts in Asia. We propose future research directions that acknowledge the role of cultural values and social factors in shaping the home learning environment, and, by extension, in facilitating children’s early literacy and numeracy development.

No Association Between the Home Math Environment and Numerical and Patterning Skills in a Large and Diverse Sample of 5- to 6-year-olds

Selecting a large and diverse sample of 5–6-year-old preschool children (179 boys and 174 girls; M_age = 70.03 months, SD_age = 3.43), we aimed to extend previous findings on variability in children’s home math environment (i.e., home math activities, parental expectations, and attitudes) and its association with children’s mathematical skills. We operationalized mathematics in a broader way than in previous studies, by considering not only children’s numerical skills but also their patterning skills as integral components of early mathematical development. We investigated the effects of children’s gender and socioeconomic status (SES) on their home math environment, examined the associations between children’s home math environment and their mathematical skills, and verified whether these associations were moderated by children’s gender and/or SES. Parents of 353 children completed a home math environment questionnaire and all children completed measures of their numerical (e.g., object counting) and patterning skills (e.g., extending repeating patterns). Results indicated no effect of children’s gender on their home math environment. There was no effect of SES on the performed home math activities, but small SES differences existed in parents’ math-related expectations and their attitudes. We found no evidence for associations between children’s home math environment and their mathematical skills. Furthermore, there were no moderating effects of gender or SES on these associations. One explanation for these findings might relate to the characteristics of the general preschool system in the country of the present study (Belgium). Future studies should consider the effect of the preschool learning environment because it might explain differences between studies and countries with regard to the home math environment and its association with mathematical skills.

Longitudinal Effects of the Home Learning Environment and Parental Difficulties on Reading and Math Development Across Grades 1-9

This study focuses on parental reading and mathematical difficulties, the home literacy environment, and the home numeracy environment as well as their predictive role in Finnish children’s reading and mathematical development through Grades 1–9. We examined if parental reading and mathematical difficulties directly predict children’s academic performance and/or if they are mediated by the home learning environment. Mothers (n = 1590) and fathers (n = 1507) reported on their reading and mathematical difficulties as well as on the home environment (shared reading, teaching literacy, and numeracy) when their children were in kindergarten. Tests for reading fluency, reading comprehension, and arithmetic fluency were administered to children in Grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, and 9. Parental reading difficulties predicted children’s reading fluency, whereas parental mathematical difficulties predicted their reading comprehension and arithmetic fluency. Familial risk was associated with neither formal nor informal home environment factors, whereas maternal education had a significant relationship with both, with higher levels of education among mothers predicting less time spent on teaching activities and more time spent on shared reading. In addition, shared reading was significantly associated with the development of reading comprehension up to Grades 3 and 4, whereas other components of the home learning environment were not associated with any assessed skills. Our study highlights that taken together, familial risk, parental education, and the home learning environment form a complex pattern of associations with children’s mathematical and reading skills.

Probing the Relationship Between Home Numeracy and Children's Mathematical Skills: A Systematic Review

The concept of home numeracy has been defined as parent–child interactions with numerical content. This concept started to receive increasing attention since the last decade. Most of the studies indicated that the more parents and their children engage in numerical experiences, the better children perform in mathematical tasks. However, there are also contrasting results indicating that home numeracy does not play a role or that there is a negative association between the parent–child interactions and children's mathematics performance. To shed light on these discrepancies, a systematic review searching for available articles examining the relationship between home numeracy and mathematical skills was conducted. Thirty-seven articles were retained and a p-curve analysis showed a true positive association between home numeracy and children's mathematical skills. A more qualitative investigation of the articles revealed five common findings: (1) Advanced home numeracy interactions but not basic ones are associated with children's mathematical skills. (2) Most participants in the studies were mothers, however, when both parents participated and were compared, only mothers' reports of formal home numeracy activities (i.e., explicit numeracy teaching) were linked to children's mathematical skill. (3) Formal home numeracy activities have been investigated more commonly than informal home numeracy activities (i.e., implicit numeracy teaching). (4) The number of studies that have used questionnaires to assess home numeracy is larger compared with the ones that have used observations. (5) The majority of the studies measured children's mathematical skills with comprehensive tests that index mathematical ability with one composite score rather than with specific numerical tasks. These five common findings might explain the contradictory results regarding the relationship between home numeracy and mathematical skills. Therefore, more research is necessary to draw quantitative conclusions about these five points.

Construct-Specific and Timing-Specific Aspects of the Home Environment for Children's School Readiness

Prior evidence supports that the home environment is related to children’s development of school readiness skills. However, it remains unclear how construct- and timing-specific aspects of the home environment are related to children’s school readiness skills, unique from overall, stable aspects of home quality. Unpacking associations due to specific constructs and timing of the home environment may provide insights on the theoretical processes that connect the home environment to school readiness. Using data from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (N = 1,364), the current study examines how timing (36 and 54 months) and constructs (educational stimulation and socio-emotional responsivity) of the home environment, relative to overall levels across time, relate to children’s language skills, math skills, and externalizing behaviors. The overall, stable aspects of the home environment were significantly associated with children’s language skills and externalizing problems. Additionally, there were significant paths from the stimulation construct at 54 months to math skills, language skills, and externalizing problems. These findings provide evidence that although the overall home environment is predictive of school readiness, the stimulation construct of the home environment at 54 months has additional concurrent relations to children’s school readiness. Implications for the role of the home environment and children’s school readiness are discussed.

Examining the Factor Structure of the Home Mathematics Environment to Delineate Its Role in Predicting Preschool Numeracy, Mathematical Language, and Spatial Skills

A growing body of evidence suggests that the ways in which parents and preschool children interact in terms of home-based mathematics activities (i.e., the home mathematics environment; HME) is related to children's mathematics development (e.g., primarily numeracy skills and spatial skills); however, this body of evidence is mixed with some research supporting the relation and others finding null effects. Importantly, few studies have explicitly examined the factor structure of the HME and contrasted multiple hypothesized models. To develop more precise models of how the HME supports children's mathematics development, the structure of the HME needs to be examined and linked to mathematics performance. The purpose of this study was to extend prior work by replicating the factor structure of the HME (as one general HME factor and three specific factors of direct numeracy, indirect numeracy, and spatial) and using those factors to predict direct assessments of children's numeracy, mathematical language, and spatial skills. It was hypothesized that the general HME factor would be related to each direct assessment, the direct numeracy factor would be related to both numeracy and mathematical language, and the spatial factor would be related to spatial skills. Using a sample of 129 preschool children (M age = 4.71 years, SD = 0.55; 46.5% female), a series of confirmatory factor analyses were conducted. Results diverged somewhat from prior work as the best fitting model was a bifactor model with a general HME factor and two specific factors (one that combined direct and indirect numeracy activities and another of spatial activities) rather than three specific factors as had previously been found. Further, structural equation modeling analyses suggested that, in contrast to expectations, only the direct + indirect numeracy factor was a significant predictor of direct child assessments when accounting for age, sex, and parental education. These findings provide evidence that a bifactor model is important in understanding the structure of the HME, but only one specific factor is related to children's outcomes. Delineating the structure of the HME, and how specific facets of the HME relate to children's mathematics skills, provides a strong foundation for understanding and enhancing the mechanisms that support mathematics development.

Predictors of mathematical attainment trajectories across the primary-to-secondary education transition: parental factors and the home environment

A 'maths crisis' has been identified in the UK, with many adults and adolescents underachieving in maths and numeracy. This poor performance is likely to develop from deficits in maths already present in childhood. Potential predictors of maths attainment trajectories throughout childhood and adolescence relate to the home environment and aspects of parenting including parent-child relationships, parental mental health, school involvement, home teaching, parental education and gendered play at home. This study examined the aforementioned factors as predictors of children's maths attainment trajectories (age 7-16) across the challenging transition to secondary education. A secondary longitudinal analysis of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children found support for parental education qualifications, a harmonious parent-child relationship and school involvement at age 11 as substantial predictors of maths attainment trajectories across the transition to secondary education. These findings highlight the importance of parental involvement for maths attainment throughout primary and secondary education.

Comprehension of Connectives: Development Across Primary School Age and Influencing Factors

Language development is not completed when children enter primary school. As the comprehension of connectives (such as although, despite) is important for understanding and producing academic texts and, thus, relevant for school success, we investigated its development and influencing factors across primary school age on the basis of a newly developed and validated test instrument. Using a German sample of 627 students (n = 361 language minority learners) in primary school, results of growth curve models showed students' initial level of the comprehension of connectives to be negatively related to its growth rate. Additional analyses revealed this association to be mainly due to parental socioeconomic status (SES) rather than students' language background. In particular, parental SES and students' receptive grammar impacted initial level as well as growth rate of connective comprehension. Our results point to the necessity of a continuous and early sensitization for the register of academic language especially in the group of students from a low socioeconomic background.

Parent–Child Math Discourse and Children's Math Thinking in Early Childhood

The main objectives of this study were to construct a conceptual model of parent–child math discourse strategies (MDS) and explore (a) the differences between mother's and father's MDS with their children, (b) the relations between parents' MDS and children's responses, and (c) the relations between parent–child MDS and children's math performance. A sample of 56 father–child and mother–child dyads were videotaped while interacting in math-related problems followed by arithmetic problems test administered to children. The interactions were rated by theObservation of Mathematical Discourse Scaledeveloped for the current study. The findings indicate that fathers showed higher Mathematical Extension than mothers. Mathematical Language and Regulation strategies correlated with children's responsiveness. Mathematical Extension was significantly higher for father–boy than for father–girl and higher for mother–boy than for mother–girl. Children's math ability was positively correlated only with fathers' Regulation. The findings were explained in relation to theory and previous findings.

Parents' characteristics, the home environment, and children's numeracy skills: How are they related in low- to middle-income families in the Philippines?

The home numeracy environment is often assumed to play a role in early numeracy development. This study aimed to provide a comprehensive picture of the home numeracy environment of children living in low- to middle-income communities in the Philippines. Moreover, it examined the relations among various parents' characteristics, the home numeracy environment parents created, and their young children's numeracy skills. Data were collected from 290 families through parental questionnaires, numeracy tests for children, and numeracy tests for parents. Results of structural equation modeling showed that parents' education level, calculation fluency, own reported math activities, home numeracy resources and home numeracy activities all had direct associations with children's numeracy skills. Parents' calculation fluency and own math activities also had indirect links with children's numeracy skills through home numeracy resources and home numeracy activities. These findings provide insights into the question of which children are at risk for poor numeracy development and how to support children's early numeracy learning.

Children's Home Numeracy Environment Predicts Growth of their Early Mathematical Skills in Kindergarten

This study investigated the longitudinal associations between children's early mathematics and their home numeracy environment (HNE). Chilean children from families who varied widely in socioeconomic status were assessed at the beginning and end of prekindergarten in 2016 (N = 419, M_age  = 4:7 [years:months]), and at the end of kindergarten in 2017 (N = 368, M_age  = 5:10). Children whose parents provided frequent operational numeracy activities (e.g., learning simple sums) at prekindergarten showed better arithmetic performance and growth in nonsymbolic and symbolic number comparison at the end of kindergarten. Parents' knowledge of number-related games predicted children's arithmetic skills and growth in nonsymbolic number comparison. These findings underscore the persistent relations between the HNE and the development of children's mathematical skills.

Examining the Relations of the Home Literacy Environments of Families of Low SES with Children's Early Literacy Skills

This study examined variability of the home literacy environment (HLE) using multiple measures among families of low SES. The relations of the measures to each other and to children's early oral language skills and print knowledge were reported. Considerable variability of the self-reported HLE items and the Children's Title Checklist (CTC) but low correlations were found among items. Children's expressive language skills were predicted by the CTC. The number of storybooks in the home predicted variance within children's receptive vocabulary. Concepts about Print (CAP) scores were predicted by the primary caregivers' frequency of shared reading and the age when parents began reading to children. Children's letter name scores were not associated with any of the HLE measures in this study. The research provides additional information about the HLE within the homes of low SES using multiple measures and how they relate differentially to children's early language and literacy skills.