STEM Day – An interview with Helen J Williams, winner of the Nursery World Award for professional book of the year
In celebration of STEM Day, we chatted with author Helen J Williams about the importance of Early Years mathematics, her journey in the field and more.
Tell us about your journey to becoming an Early Years mathematics consultant?
I began teaching in a Y3 class, in 1979. From there I moved into teaching Reception/Y1/Y2 over the next few years. In the mid-1980s, whilst teaching Reception, I studied for an MPhil in mathematics education with the OU under Professor John Mason. I was increasingly fascinated by my Reception children’s responses to the mathematics curriculum available and was seeking ways to make this more relevant to my young learners. I was also collaborating closely with the local Nursery teacher, and we did some joint work together in her school-based nursery, which was eye-opening for both of us. Later I was invited to join the Local Education Authority Mathematics Advisory Team, working alongside teachers in classes from Nursery to Y6. After returning to school, a permanent job came up in the LEA Team and I worked in that team until it was disbanded in the mid-1990s. At this point I had young twins, so myself and a colleague went freelance. I have integrated this work with teaching (I retired from my last school post in 2016) and completed a PhD into play and mathematics in 2014. I have been a member of the Association of Teachers of Mathematics since the early 1980s (ATM) and working with colleagues teaching mathematics across all ages, birth to adult, has retained my deep interest in mathematics learning and teaching.
Is there much research going on about the importance of early mathematics learning? Are there any research reports that really influence your approach?
Oh, my goodness, over the last 20 years there has been an ever-growing wealth of research into early mathematics; much of which has taken place outside the UK. This is set to change, however with the development of the new Centre for Early Mathematical Learning founded to link EY maths research and practice (CEML) and situated at Loughborough University, which launched this year. I am deeply honoured and excited to be asked to work with the team on its development.
The book that begun it all for me was Martin Hughes’ “Children and Number: Difficulties in Learning Mathematics.” (1986).
The following organisations and websites are important for early years practitioners to be aware of and you can sign up for email alerts to short posts linking research to practice:
Erikson Institute’s Early Math Collaborative and DREME - these are American educators and researchers advancing knowledge of early mathematics education; both have plenty of accessible and free resources to support teachers, practitioners and families in developing healthy young mathematicians.
Learning Trajectories – the work in the USA of Professors Julie Sarama and Doug Clements is unequalled and impressive. Their research has had an enormous impact on myself and my colleagues. Their most recent book has a permanent place on my desk: Learning and Teaching Early Math. Their website is free to access.
I am a member of the UK Early Childhood Mathematics Group, creating resources and guidance for early years practitioners and teachers of children up to the age of 8. Working alongside colleagues in this (voluntary) group has influenced me enormously.
As well as ATM and ECMG, I also need to mention colleagues working in NRICH, who have also been significant influences on my thinking. Their free website contains a number of shorter articles which practitioners might find a helpful inroad to the last 20 years of mathematics research.
What can EY practitioners and teachers do to enhance engagement in mathematics learning? Do you have a top 5 tips?
I guess my first tip must be to read my book and try some things out with your children! Observe what they say and do, interact sensitively and then research the background on this area of maths to decide what to do next (see my answer to question 2).
We need to stay connected to our learners and their interests to promote engagement and confidence in mathematics: What are they interested in doing right now? How can I link some maths into that? This is what I refer to as bringing some mathematics into their natural play.
The other side of the coin is for us to be more playful with the mathematics we teach and introduce. Allow the children plenty of space to ‘own’ it, to play with the ideas we introduce. Use continuous provision as a place for some exploration and sense-making in maths. Am I ensuring that the Characteristics of Effective Teaching and Learning are part of my mathematics provision?
Playing and exploring
Active learning, and
Creating and thinking critically.
Not sure if that is five, but I think that says all I want to say.
Do you think early mathematics learning is important in sparking children’s interest in STEM subjects?
Not only is early mathematics essential for children’s full development, it is also predictive of later, wider achievement . Early mathematical learning is critical in sparking interest in STEM subjects – or as I prefer– STEAM subjects, including the Arts, as long as we approach maths in a way that is engaging for us all - adults and children alike. Too many of us tell stories of horrific school maths experiences. We can change this, and we must.
One example of how maths touches the whole of our lives, illustrating its importance in STEAM perfectly, is the area of spatial reasoning. Spatial reasoning (shape and space thinking and understanding) involves how we understand location (where things are positioned and where they are in relation to other things), dimensions (for example, how far away something is or how big something is, and the properties of objects (such as whether some things fit together, or something is curved). We all use these awarenesses every day of our lives: understanding directions, fitting things together, interpreting charts and diagrams, for eg. This is why the ECMG have developed comprehensive, freely available materials for supporting the development of young children’s spatial reasoning here. I hope you find this engaging and helpful when working with your young learners.
Book Details
Playful Mathematics
Dr. Helen J Williams
March 2022
ISBN: 9781529755152
About the Author
