Research on the practice of massaging the head of a baby with hot water and ointments in Ghana. By Dzamesi Yael (Ph.D. in Science Education)
Grouping and separating numbers and quantities: Kindergarten 2.
(7 children, ages: 5 to 6 years old)
Abstract.
The Children in kindergarten 2 knew how to add quantities of discs up to 10. The next step was learning to add more discs to an existing number of discs on the table. The children learnt to differentiate between the quantity they had at first, what they added and the total. The children could say what was the new quantity or the total. However, none of them could say how many discs he or she added to get the final quantity of discs by themselves. They could indicate how many discs they added only if the teacher separated the discs that were at first and the discs that were added and pointed on each group with explanation. Their immediate correct answer after the explanation could not indicate that the children understood the meaning of the counting, but It could be that their answer was a recitation from the short-term memory with nothing stored in the long-term memory.
Children in kindergarten 2 finished learning numbers 1 up to 10. They counted different number of items (real items and in a picture) and wrote the correct number near the picture of the items. They concluded what they counted, and we thought they understood the meaning of quantity. The next step was learning to add more discs to an existing number of discs on the table and to differentiate between the quantity that they had at first and what they added (Table 1).
When children had for example 2 discs and they were asked to put 3 more discs, they could say that together they have 5 discs. Then the children were asked: "How many discs did you add?" When the discs stood together in a line irrespective of their color the children could not answer correctly, they only repeated on the answer "5" (Table 1, case 1 and 2).
If the different groups of the discs of what was at first and what was added stood separated and the teacher pointed on each group and asked them "How many discs were there at first? and, “How many discs did you add?" the children answered correctly (table 1, case 3 and 4).
​
Table 1: Joining two groups of discs together.
.jpg)
We tried to teach them to differentiate between the number of items they had at first, and the ones they added later by the following activity (Figure 1).
The following example is with number four. The child had to draw the additional squares to match the number of circles (Figure 1). In this way they could differentiate between the printed square and their own drawing of squares. The teacher worked individually with each of the four kindergarten 2 children and explained them the task in their mother tongue. The children had no problem in understanding the task and drew the required squares. After many explanations and a week worth of practice, only two out of the four children could answer how many squares they drew or added. The other two children continued to count all the set and answered: “Four squares”.
​
Figure 1: Completing the set of squares to be equal to the circles.
The distinction between the quantity of discs that was at first and the quantity of discs that was added is a process involved vision and cognition. There were three groups of discs: Group A – what was on the table, Group B - what the child added to group A, and group C – the total discs or sum. Groups A and B were temporal groups since when they were joined to form group C, they had vanished from sight. Only group C was permanent. The question is: why the child could not hold in his vision working memory group A and B. This operation was simple. The hot water massage on the head of a baby is mostly applied on the front of the head and therefore, affects the prefrontal of the brain. The second place of importance of the hot water massage on the head of a baby is the back of the head where the occipital lobe is. There is possibility that the hot water affects the area responsible for visual working memory. The primary and associated visionary areas in the brain saw three different quantities over time that lasted seconds to minutes. The vision working memory was supposed to keep the visions of group A and B (group C was still visible on the table). The visionary working memory is important for farther processing of numbers, quantities and mathematical calculations in the higher cognitive areas such as in the prefrontal [166]. If the hot water impaired these areas in the occipital lobe, it can be the reason for the failure of the children to distinguish between group A and B since their vision working memory could not have kept the different visions of the quantities.