Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society

The approximate number system (ANS) is frequentlyconsidered to be a foundation for the acquisition of uniquelyhuman symbolic numerical capabilities. However, themechanism by which the ANS influences symbolic numberrepresentations and mathematical thought remains poorlyunderstood. Here, we tested the relation between ANS acuity,cardinal number knowledge, approximate arithmetic, andsymbolic math achievement in a one-year longitudinalinvestigation of preschoolers’ early math abilities. Our resultssuggest that cardinal number knowledge is an intermediaryfactor in the relation between ANS acuity and symbolic mathachievement. Furthermore, approximate arithmeticperformance contributes unique variance to math achievementthat is not accounted for by ANS acuity. These findingssuggest that there are multiple routes by which the ANSinfluences math achievement. Therefore, interventionstargeting both the precision and manipulability of the ANSmay prove to be more beneficial for improving mathematicalreasoning compared to interventions targeting only one ofthese factors.