Contributions of the home math environment to young children's emerging math skills

Children possess foundational math concepts from infancy and acquire additional math skills such as words to describe numbers, sizes, and shapes of objects long before they start formal instruction in math. In this chapter, we review extant research linking variations in the home math environment to individual differences in young children's math skills. More frequent engagement in math activities in the home as well as more frequent parent-child conversations about math concepts have been associated with greater number and spatial math skills. Moreover, parents' beliefs and attitudes about math have been linked to the home math environment and thereby indirectly to children's math skills. We outline how different theories (i.e., the Ecological Model of Development and the Opportunity-Propensity model) have started to stimulate research unpacking complex interactions between environmental factors and children's and parents' characteristics that shape the home math environment and children's math skills. Drawing parallels between educational psychology research in formal settings and the informal learning environment at home can guide future research on the home math environment. We end by raising a number of important research questions for future investigations.