Full-body Movement in Numerical Trainings: A Pilot Study with an Interactive Whiteboard

• Main Authors: Ursula Fischer, Korbinian Moeller, Stefan Huber, Ulrike Cress, Hans-Christoph Nuerk
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Serious Games Society 2015-12-01
• Series: International Journal of Serious Games
• Subjects: elementary education; numerical processing; spatial-numerical association; embodied cognition; media in education
• Online Access: http://journal.seriousgamessociety.org/index.php/IJSG/article/view/93

In this pilot study, we introduce an effective spatial-numerical training to improve children’s arithmetic abilities. We designed this training based on previous successful trainings of spatial-numerical associations (such as number line estimation) and introduced a full-body response movement. Children responded to a number line estimation task presented on an interactive whiteboard by moving their whole body to the left or right. In a pilot study with a small group of children (total sample size N = 27), this experimental training was compared to two control trainings, one training the same task without the full-body movement and one training a different task with full-body movement. The experimental training led to significant improvement in all dependent measures and was most effective in enhancing performance in a spatial-numerical task. Furthermore, full-body movement helped children maintain their performance level in multi-digit addition. We conclude that full-body movement can enhance the efficiency of numerical trainings, which could also be successfully utilized in serious games and incorporated into the classroom.