The examination of 1st-4st grade coursebooks in context of algebraic thinking

In this study, it is questioned that how 1st-4th grade Mathematics coursebooks support algebraic thinking. Document analysis approach, which is one of the qualitative research methods, is used to collect the data of the study. While examining the coursebooks published by the ME, the content in the field of learning numbers is discussed. A conceptual framework previously created by two experts is used in the analysis of the data. At the end of the research, it is seen that basic process features are included in "Generalizing Arithmetic", one of the algebraic thinking components of the tasks and activities in the coursebooks. However, content emphasizing relational meaning is weak. In addition, it is determined that the meaning of the variable's changing quantity is not included while the unknown meaning of it frequently is. As the coursebooks are examined in the context of "Functional Thinking", which is one of the algebraic thinking components, it is seen that they are insufficient in presenting them in a way that allows them to establish functional relationships. When the "Modeling/Problem Solving" component is considered, it has been seen that numerical value is generally focused on in problem solving. However, it is not sufficient to support quantitative reasoning and mathematical modeling is not included at all. Moreover, it was seen that the generalization situations in these tasks and activities were presented to the students ready-made. However, the situations that allowed the students to discover and express the generalizations were not included to a large extent. Furthermore, it has been confirmed that there are content in the coursebooks that allow the development of representation skills, but representations are not sufficient for associating.