Abstract

The present study examined the spatial affordances of hundreds charts in the context of place value knowledge, number sense, and use of the chart for addition and subtraction. Kindergarten and first-grade students (N = 47) participated in online interviews with a researcher. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three conditions in which they received a lesson on how to use the hundreds chart to solve addition word problems. Each condition used a different chart: (a) top-down, where the numbers begin in the top row and increase with downward movement; (b) bottom-up, where the numbers begin in the bottom row and increase with upward movement, (c) explicit analogy, where a bottom-up chart was accompanied by visual cues to highlight the structure of the bottom-up chart. Children were assessed on their place and number sense before and after the lesson. After the lesson, learning and transfer tasks were administered to assess place value and the use of the chart. Results showed that the top-down and explicit analogy conditions were better able to move through the chart in the appropriate vertical direction to solve subtraction problems than the bottom-up condition. The top-down chart was more effective for place value knowledge than the other two conditions. No effects were found for number sense. The present study contributes to the literature on the affordances of hundreds charts and has implications for teachers on the use of the chart in mathematics instruction.