Background: This article critically examines the nature of isiXhosa translations in mathematics learning materials, specifically focusing on the doubling and halving unit within the 'South African Grade 3 Mental Starters Assessment Project (MSAP): Teacher Guide'. Teaching in home languages is encouraged in the Foundation Phase, but unfamiliar…

This paper interrogates the complexity of language use at the Grade Three-Four transition, using the South African context as a microcosm of similar educational systems. The paper describes the complex nature of the transition, particularly within a second language (L2) instructional context. It explores the dissonance between and among theory,…

Although the general development of mathematical abilities in primary school has been the focus of many researchers, the development of place value understanding has rarely been investigated to date. This is possibly due to the lack of conceptual approaches and empirical studies related to this topic. To fill this gap, a theory-driven and…

This case study describes and investigates the instructional practices of Grades 1 to 5 teachers and the levels of geometry thinking of the learners, according to the Van Hiele model, with a view to determining whether there is a match between the instructional practice and the learners' level of thinking. The instructional practices of the…

In this article we describe the design process for an after-school Grade 3 mathematics club, based on our experiences running a pilot club in a 2011 research and development project. Working from a sociocultural perspective, we show the progression from an initial multifaceted design to a much simpler, more learner-centred design that speaks…

This study examined strategies for spelling accuracy in Grade 3 children. Thirty bilingual, Afrikaans-English speaking children and 30 monolingual, English-speaking children were assessed on their ability to spell English words and non-words. The bilingual children were also assessed on their Afrikaans word and non-word spelling abilities. In…