HOW DO CHILDREN'S CLASSIFICATION APPEAR IN FREE PLAY? A CASE STUDY

I analyze an episode from afield work in a multilingual kindergarten in Oslo, using semiotic theory. I examine verbal and non-verbal expressions of two boys playing in a sandpit. A key part of their play is creation of structure. My findings indicate that this structuring become conscious experiences to the children. I would argue that we cannot know about the children's mathematical and communicative competence without knowing the physical context, the play in the sandpit, and the friendship between the boys.