What is Subitizing?
Subitizing is defined as the skill of “instantly seeing how many” without the need for counting, when presented with a group or number of things (Reys, et al., 2012). The term Subitizing comes from the Latin word for suddenly, and can also be described as the “direct perceptual apprehension of numerosity of a group” (Clements, 1999).
Children who are entering school can often identify quantities of up to 3 items without counting, but simply through inspection and using dice, cards or ten frames can identify groups up to 4 (Reys, et al., 2012). Certain arrangements are more easily perceivable than others to young children, for example rectangular arrangements on dice are most easily perceived, followed by linear and then circular. Random arrangements are the most difficult to perceive due to no apparent patterns, making it easier to subitize (Reys, et al., 2012).
This website was created as the group component of the second assignment for EDF2304 - Early Numeracy.
Members of this group include:
Emily Bolin, Teaghan Rooks, Sophie Werner and Susanna Wu.
Justification & Big Ideas in Subitizing
Exploring the research
Teaching the Topic
Reference List:
Beckwith, M., & Restle, F. (1966). Process of Enumeration. Journal of Educational Research, 73(5), 437-444. doi:10.1037/h0023650
Charlesworth, R., & Lind, K. (2012). Math and Science for Young Children. Cengage Learning.
Clements, D. H. (1999). Subitizing: What Is It? Why Teach It? Teaching Children Mathematics, 5(7), 400-405.
Clements, D. H., & Callahan, L. G. (1986). Cards: A Good Deal to Offer. Arithmetic Teacher, 34(1), (14-17.
Clements, D., & Sarama, J. (2014). Quantity, Number, and Subitising. In Learning and Teaching Early Math: The Learning Trajectories Approach (2nd ed., pp. 9-20). New York: Oxford: Routledge.
Douglas, H. R. (1925). The development of number concept in children of preschool and kindergarten age. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 8(6), 443-470. doi:10.1037/h0065267
Fischer, J. P. (1984). L’appréhension du nombre par le jeune enfant [Young children’s appraisal of number]. Enfance, 36(2), 167–187.
Fitzhugh, J. I. (1978). The Role of Subitizing and Counting in the Development of the Young Children's Conception of Small Numbers. Dissertation Abstracts International 40, 4521B-4522B.
Fuson, K. C. (1992). Research on Whole Number Addition and Subtraction. In D. A. Grauws (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Mathematics Teaching and Learning (pp. 243-275). New York: Macmillan Publishing Co.
Gelman, R., & Gallistel, C. R. (1978). The Child's Understanding of Number Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Gelman, R., & Tucker, M. F. (1975). Further investigations of the young child's conception of number. Child Development, 46(1), 167-175.
Groffman, S. (2009). Subitizing: Vision therapy for math deficits. Optometry and Vision Development, 40(4), 229-238.
Howell, S.C. & Kemp, C.R. (2010). Assessing Preschool Number Sense: Skills Demonstrated by Children Prior to School Entry. Educational Psychology, 30(4), 411-429.
Klein, A., & Starkey, P. (1988). Universals in the Development of Early Arithmetic Cognition. In G. B. Saxe, & M. Gearhart (Eds.), Children's Mathematics (pp.27-54). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Le Corre, M., Van de Walle, G. A., Brannon, E., & Carey, S. (2006). Re-visiting the performance/competence debate in the acquisition of counting as a representation of the positive integers. Cognitive Psychology, 52(2), 130–169.
McMath, J., & King, M.A. (1994). Using Picture Books to Teach Mathematical Concepts. Day Care and Early Education, 21(3), 18-22.
Penner-Wilger, M., Fast, L., LeFevre, J., Smith-Chant, B.L., Skwarchuk, S., Kamawar, D., & Bisanz, J. (2007). The foundations of numeracy: Subitizing, finger gnosia, and fine-motor ability. In D.S. McNamara & J.G. Trafton (Eds.), Proceedings of the 29th Annual Cognitive Science Society (pp.1385-1390). Austin, TX: Cognitive Science Society.
Piazza, M., Mechelli, A., Butterworth, B., & Price, C. J. (2002). Are subitizing and counting implemented as separate or functionally overlapping processes. NeuroImage, 15(2), 435–446. doi:10.1006/nimg.2001.0980
Trick, L. M. (2003). The role of working memory in spatial enumeration: Patterns of selective interference in subitizing and counting. Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 12(4), 673-681. doi:10.3758/BF03196757
Reys, R.E., Lindquist, M.M., Lambdin, D.V., Smith, N.L., Rogers, A., Falle, J., Frid, S. & Bennett, S. (2012). Helping Children Learn Mathematics. Australia: John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd. Salter, A. L. J. (1976) Teaching Counting to Nursery School Children. Dissertation Abstracts International, 36, 5844B.
Roffey, S. (2004). The New Teacher's Survival Guide to Behaviour. London: SAGE Publications Ltd.
Silverman, I. W., & Rose, A. P. (1980). Subitizing and Counting Skills in 3-Year-Olds. Developmental Psychology, 16(5), 539-40. doi: 10.1037/0012-1649.16.5.539
Victorian Curriculum & Assessment Authority. (2014). AusVELS Mathematics Scope & Sequence; Foundation Level. Australia.
Wagner, S. H., & Walters, J. (1982). A longitudinal analysis of early number concepts: From numbers to number. In G. E. Foreman (Ed.), Action and Thought: From Sensorimotor Schemes to Symbolic Operations (pp. 137-161). London: Academic Press.