The Role of Play in Children's Spatial Development

• In Event: Moscone Center North Roundtable Session 11
  In Roundtable Session: The Use of Games and Play to Enhance Learning Environments

Abstract

Spatial play is associated with better spatial skills, but it is unclear whether spatial play causes improvement in spatial skills. We examined whether 4 weeks (6 hours) of physical or digital spatial play improved children’s spatial reasoning. Seventy-two kindergarteners and first-graders were randomly assigned to physical spatial play, digital spatial play, or non-spatial play (control), with spatial reasoning measured at pre- and post-test. We report preliminary results (n = 30) showing interesting gender differences: Boys scores’ increased for mental transformation and spatial visualization but girls’ scores decreased. Data from the full sample will allow further investigation of these effects. This research has important implications for the development of spatial reasoning and the use of digital media in education.

Authors

• Sierra Eisen, University of Virginia

• Jamie Jirout, University of Virginia

• Angeline S Lillard, University of Virginia