Children’s mathematical graphics illustrating inner "voices": A literature review

Everyday play encounters are a powerful opportunity for young children to communicate and share their “voices” of personal and cultural meanings giving value to what matters in their lives. These opportunities enable children to share ideas from their understanding and imaginings of present, past, and future worlds. Children’s voices can also be made visible through their own personally created visual marks, representing a visual voice. These visual voices carry possible mathematical messages, reflecting children’s connection to their mathematical world and socio-cultural worlds. These are referred to as children’s mathematical graphics offering children the opportunity to make their connection to the mathematical world visible, and sending visual messages of significant relationships, connections, patterns, and identity is not often acknowledged as holding value. However, these mathematical graphics hold important personal meanings to children. They support children’s intersubjectivities in play encounters, communicating and connecting with others through visual messages. They have the potential to make visible children’s inner thinking and ideas. Recognising children’s mathematical graphics is one way of acknowledging this important symbolic language for communication and expression. This chapter examines existing literature relating to children’s mathematical graphics to illustrate an important way children communicate their inner voices. The synthesis of literature will provide an insight into listening to children’s voices and enable adults to value these important voices.