The Potential of Mathematical Fairy Tales as a Sustainable Didactic Tool in First-Grade Mathematics Education for Bilingual Students

The Potential of Mathematical Fairy Tales as a Sustainable Didactic Tool in First-Grade Mathematics Education for Bilingual Students | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article The Potential of Mathematical Fairy Tales as a Sustainable Didactic Tool in First-Grade Mathematics Education for Bilingual Students Dena Spyrou This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9186581/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study investigates the effectiveness of a narrative-structured instructional approach in supporting mathematical learning in a bilingual firstgrade classroom. The intervention systematically integrates narrative elements across the main phases of the mathematics lesson—concept introduction, guided practice, consolidation, and assessment—with the aim of facilitating conceptual understanding and the development of disciplinary mathematical language. The research was conducted in a Bulgarian primary school using a quasiexperimental single-group design with 25 bilingual first-grade students. Students’ mathematical achievement was examined through equivalent assessments administered before and after the instructional intervention. In addition to statistical analysis of test results, a vector-based cognitive learning acquisition index (CLI) was used to evaluate multiple indicators of mathematical competence. The findings indicate a statistically significant improvement in students’ mathematical achievement following the implementation of the narrativestructured instructional model. Additional analysis based on the CLI index shows positive dynamics across several indicators, including the acquisition of mathematical terminology, the correct application of algorithms in problem solving, and the comprehension of word problems. Qualitative reflections from pupils further suggest that the narrative context supported engagement and improved the perceived comprehensibility of mathematical tasks. Although the single-group design does not permit causal inference, the results provide preliminary empirical evidence that structured narrative-based instructional approaches may support both conceptual understanding and disciplinary language development in linguistically diverse early primary classrooms. Educational Philosophy and Theory narrative-based instruction mathematics achievement bilingual students early mathematics education instructional design quasi-experimental research Full Text Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Ethics statement: The study was conducted in accordance with institutional and national ethical standards for research involving human participants. Ethical approval for the research was granted by the Ethics Committee of the Technical University of Sofia, Bulgaria. The study was conducted with the permission of the school administration and implemented in a regular classroom setting, without disrupting the instructional process defined by the official curricula approved by the Ministry of Education and Science of Bulgaria. Participation in the study was voluntary. Informed consent was obtained from the parents/guardians of all participating students prior to data collection. All data were collected anonymously and used solely for research purposes, ensuring full confidentiality and compliance with data protection regulations. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9186581","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":609909500,"identity":"c38bc61c-2f22-4eb3-af55-a527598607cb","order_by":0,"name":"Dena Spyrou","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA6ElEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDCCA2BSAowYGCoYGAxI1HKGeC0QXQyMbURo4Tvee/ADY45FHv/s5mMSP+cdljdnbz7A8KNiG04tkmfOJUswbpMolrhzLE2yd9thw509xxIYe87cxqnF4EaOAUhL4gaJHGMD3m2HGTcARZgZ2/Bouf/G+AdES/5nw79zDtsT1nKDxwxmC+Nj3obDiQS1SJ7JMbNIBGqZcSPN8LHMsfTkDWeOJRzE5xe+42eMb3zcVpfYPyP5wcE3Nda2G443H3zwowK3FjBIQDCbweQB/OpRQR0pikfBKBgFo2CEAABEP13vZjCP1wAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0009-0003-2580-3782","institution":"TU Sofia","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Dena","middleName":"","lastName":"Spyrou","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-03-21 14:54:59","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":{"humanSubjects":true,"vertebrateSubjects":false,"conflictsOfInterestStatement":false,"humanSubjectEthicalGuidelines":true,"humanSubjectConsent":true,"humanSubjectClinicalTrial":false,"humanSubjectCaseReport":false,"vertebrateSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false},"doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9186581/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9186581/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":105565666,"identity":"6c889473-9ddc-4f60-80a7-b14ff955288a","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-03-27 12:53:58","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":409369,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"MERJD26001093.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9186581/v1_covered_d1cac5ae-85bf-46e1-9dca-7ac2bdfbe74f.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"\u003cp\u003eThe authors declare no competing interests.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEthics statement: The study was conducted in accordance with institutional and national ethical standards for research involving human participants. 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