What young children know about numbers

Two sources of evidence that young children know some things about number without the benefit of school instruction are reviewed: (a) Preschoolers follow counting principles in order to represent the numerical value of a display and can reason arithmetically about numbers they represent accurately; (b) children in the early primary grades achieve an understanding that there is no largest number and that numbers never end. It is suggested that early numerical abilities, like early language abilities, are universal cognitive abilities. The notion of number readiness in terms of Piagetian theory is discussed. Consideration is given to the kind of further research required to bridge the research findings and educational practice.