Spatial Relationships in Mathematics

Understanding spatial relationships is a foundation of many mathematical, language, and logical skills. It is thanks to them that a child can recognize where something is, in which direction it is moving, how to arrange objects relative to one another, and also describe the world around them.

In this chapter children learn through action and play how to recognize and describe the position of objects relative to one another, using ideas such as: above, below, beside, between, in front, behind, on the left, on the right, inside, outside, closer, farther. All of this happens in a friendly, active way - with Korbo blocks, which can be arranged, moved, and used to build bridges, towers, mazes, and whole spatial worlds.

During the games children handle pieces such as gears, cylinders, platforms, and connectors, learning not only spatial orientation, but also developing speech, eye-hand coordination, concentration, and spatial imagination. They create miniature scenes, recreate arrangements, and give each other instructions - and in this way they learn precise thinking and communicating.

The games in this chapter prepare children for learning geometry and coding, and also for understanding maps, diagrams, directions, and logical structures. This is mathematics immersed in movement, language, and building - the kind that engages the child's whole body and mind.

After completing the tasks in this chapter, the child:

• recognizes and correctly uses words describing the position of objects, such as: above, below, beside, in front, behind, on the left, on the right, between, inside, outside,
• recreates spatial arrangements, placing blocks according to a spoken instruction or a visual model,
• creates their own constructions taking into account spatial relations between the particular pieces (e.g. "a bridge over a river", "a block behind a tower"),
• moves according to given directions, e.g. "go two steps to the right, then forward",
• talks about the position of objects, using correct spatial vocabulary,
• plans and describes a route or an arrangement of pieces in space (e.g. a robot route, an obstacle-course layout),
• makes comparisons of the position of objects, e.g. "This block is farther than that one", "This gear is closer to the platform than the cylinder",
• carries out instructions containing complex spatial relations, e.g. "Place a blue cylinder behind the red gear, under the yellow gear",
• builds spatial constructions from Korbo pieces that show knowledge of directions, relations, and positions (e.g. gear machines, towers, tunnels, houses),
• cooperates with a classmate when solving spatial tasks, e.g. giving spoken instructions, recreating a partner's arrangement.