Helping hands: Encouraging parent-child gestures during informal mathematics activities

Families' math-related talk can promote children's early math learning. However, less is known about how families use nonverbal communication, specifically hand gestures, during math activities and whether families provided information about math-related gestures might differ in their gesture use compared to families not provided information on gestures. Parents (96 % mothers; majority high household income and education) and their 3- to 5-year-old children (N = 51; 65 % Female; 63 % White) were randomly assigned to either watch a brief video on how using math gestures or how talking during play can support learning. Afterward, dyads read a number book and played a board game. Among dyads in the gesture condition, children used more gestures and parents used a higher proportion of higher-level math gestures (e.g., cardinality, arithmetic) than those in the talk condition. Results suggest that children's gesture usage and the mathematical content in parents' gestures during math activities may be malleable.