Cardinal Number Acquisition of Turkish Children

Cardinal number acquisition plays an important role in children’s sense of number. Various investigations have revealed the influence of cultural variables on cardinal number acquisition. In this research, we investigated Turkish children’s acquisition of cardinal numbers. Quantitative research method was used. The participants were 100 preschool children from four public preschools in Adıyaman, Turkey. We used the “Give me N” task with the intent of investigating children’s acquisition of cardinal numbers. We obtained data from individual interviews with children. As a result of the research, we found that 60% of the children had cardinal number acquisition, 34% were in subgroups, and 6% were in the pre-number phase. In our sample the youngest child who had acquired cardinal numbers was 45 months old. We saw that the acquisition of the cardinal number phase was between 49 and 61 months for Turkish children and the majority of children older than 62 months had acquired cardinal numbers. Turkish children have the same cardinal number acquisition levels as their western peers however they acquire cardinal numbers a bit later. This research result showed that cultural differences could have a role in the age of cardinal number acquisition but not in phases. More cross-cultural studies are needed to better understanding.