In M. Horn, M. Giannakos, & T. Pontual (Eds.), Proceedings of IDC ’22: Interaction Design and Children (Vol. “Full papers”, pp. 137–149). https://doi.org/10.1145/3501712.3529743
ABSTRACT: Balance Board Math (BBM) is a new balance-based interface for math instruction. BBM integrates disparate work on embodied cognition and on sensory regulation to offer learners integrated opportunities to both self-regulate through movement and to use their sense of balance as a resource for conceptual understanding. This approach imagines beyond common views that self-initiated background activity, such as fidgeting, is unproductive for educa- tion. With a sensor-equipped balance board and dynamic real time display, BBM’s Balance Graphing activities offer users opportuni- ties to playfully explore and embody different aspects of functions and graphs such as frequency and amplitude. We conducted an in-depth study with 6 school-aged children to examine how their movement and personal sense of balance were used for both self- regulation and to make sense of mathematical concepts through BBM. By inviting learners’ regulatory movements to serve as an interaction resource for exploring mathematical concepts, BBM offers a new genre of sensory-responsive design that could better serve instructional differentiation.