Understanding the mathematical concept of probability with children in kindergarten and in the first grade of primary school

Dr. Mara Cotič, Lea Kozel and mag. Darjo Felda

Summary:   In the kindergarten curriculum and in the Curriculum for mathematics in primary schools, the concept of probability is particularly emphasized. It enables children to develop, besides deterministic, also nondeterministic thinking, which is imperative of understanding the contemporary world. The child encounters some basic concepts of probability already in its pre-school period, especially in games of chance. The question is how children cope with them and how they understand them. We tried to find the answer, conducting the research in kindergartens and schools. We were particularly interested if there were any differences in solving probability problems between pre-school children and first grade children in primary school, especially in the exercises referring to the prediction of random events.