Semiotic Resources in the Mathematics Classroom: The Use of Gesture in the Development of Spatial Reasoning

Abstract

This paper sets out to clarify the role gesture has in creating meaning when learning mathematics. General characteristics of gesture and the mathematical concept of spatial reasoning are discussed. Features of the theoretical basis of that concepts are then explored, primarily to outline how the modern embodied form of knowledge was developed and how it applies to mathematical learning. Features of one aspect of embodied knowledge, gesture, is then examined and deconstructed to highlight specific ways it can be understood in order to contribute to mathematical learning.