Spatial reasoning resources

Here you will find links to resources that will help you implement spatial reasoning in your setting or classroom.

Spatial Reasoning Toolkit

The Spatial Reasoning Toolkit was created in collaboration with the Early Childhood Maths Group, and part funded by the ESRC Impact Acceleration Account. We summarise recent international research into the development of spatial reasoning from birth to seven years of age and have developed this into a trajectory of early learning experiences.

Resources available in the Spatial Reasoning Toolkit include:

The Spatial Reasoning Toolkit aims to clarify the mathematics in early spatial experiences, suggesting what to emphasise in order to support the development of children’s spatial reasoning in sensitive, appropriate and playful ways.

In its first year since its launch in February 2022, the Spatial Reasoning Toolkit content reached a wide audience:

2,109 videos
498 posters
34,879 online views of the toolkit
4,091 research summary and development trajectory
492 book ideas
5,481 presentation attendees
Articles shared with 260,124 contacts
3,313 engagements on Twitter
113,794 Twitter impressions

View impact flyer (PDF)

Spatial reasoning prompt cards

Developed as part of the SPAtial Cognition to Enhance mathematical learning (SPACE) programme funded by the Education Endowment Foundation, the spatial reasoning prompt cards (PDF) suggest ways to spatialise the mathematics curriculum and ways to support children in their spatial reasoning during Lego building activities. The SPACE resources are organised according to six spatial skills that can be fostered in the classroom: visualisation, visual and spatial memory, composing and decomposing, spatial scaling, perspective taking and spatial representation.

Download the prompt cards (PDF)

Lego activity ideas

Developed as part of the Block Construction for Mathematics (BLOCs) project, funded by The Leverhulme Trust, the Lego activity ideas document explains the links between spatial skills, Lego and maths and how to encourage the development of these spatial skills during Lego play.

Download the Lego activity ideas (PDF)

Spatial reasoning videos

See also: spatial reasoning videos as part of the Spatial Reasoning Toolkit

Developed as part of the SPAtial Cognition to Enhance mathematical learning (SPACE) programme funded by the Education Endowment Foundation, the Spatial Reasoning videos discuss the research evidence for the importance of spatial reasoning for mathematics, and introduce three spatial skills that you can use and encourage children to use: visualisation, spatial representation and spatial language.