ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the role of action in learning, with a focus on mathematics learning. We first explore whether learning with action yields benefits over learning without action. We draw distinctions between actions that are relevant versus irrelevant to the task at hand, and actions that do, versus that do not have meaning for the learner, and consider the implications of these different forms of action for learning. We then consider mechanisms underlying the beneficial effect of action and the differential effects of producing actions, viewing actions, and imagining actions. These different ways of engaging action may work hand in hand, such that after producing an action, viewing or imagining that same action at a later time may lead to increased learning. Finally, we consider the ways in which bodily actions relate to the concepts they represent.
