Young children’s drawings of measurement and partitive division word problems

Research shows that preschoolers can understand multiplication and division situations, yet most studies have reported children’s use of manipulatives as tools for representation. This study addresses a gap in the literature concerning young children’s interpretation of division and explores how drawing and gestures might offer insights into their problem-solving process. We hypothesize that drawing and gestures, alongside manipulatives, could serve as additional tools for children to represent division situations. We investigated how 5- to 6-year-olds from Australia and Italy represented measurement and partitive division word problems through drawings, words, and gestures, using a task-based interview. A multimodal semiotic approach was used to analyze their strategies. The findings suggest that the children were able to interpret and represent both forms of division, and their drawings and gestures helped to identify the strategies children used. We argue that children’s drawings can capture their understanding of division word problems as effectively as manipulatives.