The impact of story-based building block games on spatial language and reasoning abilities in children aged 5–6 years

Objective: To explore the impact of story-based building block games on children aged 5–6 years in terms of spatial language skills and spatial reasoning abilities. Methods: Forty-eight children aged 5–6 years were randomly divided into an experimental group (n=23) and a control group (n=25). The experimental group received one-month intervention sessions, twice a week, for a total of eight sessions. The control group played free-building block games. Spatial reasoning abilities were assessed using the Chinese-Western Preschool Intelligence Scale (building block patterns) and psychological rotation tests. Spatial language used in the children’s games was coded using the University of Chicago Spatial Language Analysis System. Results: After the intervention, the children in the experimental group demonstrated improved spatial language skills: [(15.1…