Are preschoolers who spontaneously create patterns better in mathematics?

Early patterning competence has recently been identified as an important precursor of mathematical development. Whereas the focus of this research has been on children's ability regarding repeating patterns, children might also differ in their spontaneous attention to patterns.

The present study aimed to explore 4- to 5-year olds' Spontaneous Focusing On Patterns (SFOP) and its association with their patterning and mathematical ability.

Participants were 378 children (M_age  = 4 years 10 months; 191 boys) from 17 preschools.

Spontaneous Focusing On Patterns was measured with a construction task in which children had to build a tower with 15 blocks of three different colours. The constructions of the children were grouped into three categories (i.e., pattern, random, and sorting). We additionally administered tasks assessing their patterning ability, mathematical ability, spatial ability, and visuospatial working memory.

When building a tower, 37% of the preschoolers spontaneously created a pattern, 49% made a random construction, and 14% sorted the blocks per colour. Preschoolers who spontaneously created a pattern had better patterning and mathematical ability than children in the random group. Group differences in patterning ability and spatial skills accounted for the difference in mathematical ability.

The current data suggest that children's spontaneous attention to patterns is an important component of their mathematical ability. Children's spontaneous pattern constructions may provide opportunities to discuss and practice patterns in preschool settings or at home, but more research is required to further analyse the role of SFOP in early mathematical development.