Browsing by Author "Lukkaroinen, Marjukka"

This study examines the role of physical activity and embodiment as part of mathematics education in lower elementary school. The aim of the study is to find arguments for using physical activity and embodiment as part of mathematics education and also introduce practical methods utilizing movement and embodiment. Since Finnish children are physically less active than recommended, the schools have good opportunities to increase physical acitivity and promote culture which is supportive for physical activity. The goal of increasing physical activity is also listed in the government programme of Spring 2015 in Finland. In this study I will examine how physical activity of students could increase with methods utilizing movement and embodiment. This study was based on existing research. As there is a lack of research on learning through embodiment, I defined the concepts of learning through physical activity and learning through embodiment with the concept of learning by doing. I went through research on learning by doing and selected those that involved physical activity or embodiment. The requirements for use of student-activating methods in the National Core Curriculum for Basic Education acts as a good argument for utilizing physical activity and embodiment as part of mathemematics education. Active methods and embodiment have vital role in the development of mathematical concepts as child’s mathematical thinking developes from concrete actions to abstract thinking. Bodily processes can be assumed to be meaningful to learning as several researchers criticize the separation of body and mind. According to multiple studies, physicial activity has positive impact on learning. This positive impact has been found especially in mathematical subjects. My review on research has proven that teachers utilize methods involving physical activity in teaching multiple concepts of mathematics. Primary benefit of using such methods was the increase in student engagement.