Abstract
Visual spatial working memory is an important cognitive skill that allows individuals to temporarily store and manipulate visual and spatial information. Strong visual spatial working memory has been associated with benefits in STEM fields, creativity, and academic achievement more broadly. However, many students struggle with visual spatial working memory capacities. In this paper, we review literature demonstrating that finish formative handicraft activities like origami, jewelry making, woodworking, and sculpture can improve visual spatial working memory in students. The benefits are thought to emerge because finish formative handicraft requires holding visual and spatial representations in mind, manipulating them, and executing precise motor movements. We argue finish formative handicraft should be incorporated into school curricula to support visual spatial working memory development.
Introduction
Visual spatial working memory involves creating and temporarily storing visual and spatial representations and using them to guide actions (Logie, 1995). It is a key cognitive capacity underlying success in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields, as these disciplines require strong abilities to mentally manipulate visual information and shapes. Visual spatial working memory also contributes to creative thinking and academic achievement more broadly (Alloway & Alloway, 2010).
However, research shows many students struggle with visual spatial working memory. In a study by Smith et al. (2017), 65% of elementary school students scored below average on visual spatial working memory assessments. Interventions are needed to help build students’ capacities, especially from a young age when foundational cognitive abilities are developing.
An emerging body of research suggests that finish formative handicraft activities like origami, jewelry making, woodworking and sculpture may improve visual spatial working memory in students (Sowden et al., 2015). Finish formative handicraft involves creating objects like animals, plants, geometric shapes, or jewelry by precisely folding, carving, or manipulating material components. To successfully execute finish formative handicraft projects, one must hold visual and spatial representations in mind, mentally transform them, and use them to guide precise motor actions. As such, finish formative handicraft is hypothesized to train and strengthen visual spatial working memory.
In this paper, we review evidence that finish formative handicraft boosts visual spatial working memory capacities in school-aged students. We argue finish formative handicraft should be incorporated into elementary and middle school curricula to support students’ cognitive development. We begin by discussing the nature of visual spatial working memory and challenges students face. Next, we review research on the benefits of finish formative handicraft for visual spatial working memory. Finally, we provide recommendations for implementing finish formative handicraft in schools.
The Nature of Visual Spatial Working Memory
Visual spatial working memory involves creating internal representations of visual and spatial information and manipulating them to guide actions (Logie, 1995). For example, sculpting a model car requires holding a mental image of what the finished car should look like. One must then mentally rotate and transform this representation to determine what actions are needed to sculpt each component. Strong visual spatial working memory allows one to accurately maintain mental representations without them decaying or becoming distorted.
Visual spatial working memory is distinguished from verbal working memory, which involves storing and manipulating verbal information rather than visual images and shapes. While verbal and visual spatial working memory are interrelated, they are supported by distinct neural networks and follow different developmental trajectories (Logie & Pearson, 1997). Educational research has primarily focused on verbal working memory, leaving the development of students’ visual spatial working memory relatively understudied.
However, visual spatial working memory is critical for success in STEM disciplines like physics, engineering, geometry, graph comprehension, and chemistry which involve manipulating visual-spatial information (Stieff, 2007). Strong visual spatial working memory also supports creative thinking across disciplines by allowing one to vividly imagine novel mental images (D’Errico et al., 2017). More broadly, visual spatial working memory allows students to understand diagrams, maps, charts and other visual displays that are common in textbooks. For example, a student must visualize and “move” themselves along a historical map or science diagram to fully comprehend it.
Unfortunately, research suggests students’ visual spatial working memory capacities are lacking. In a study by Smith et al. (2017), 65% of 250 elementary school students scored below the 50th percentile on the Spatial Working Memory Test Battery for Children. Similarly, Ross et al. (2021) found 72% of middle school students struggled with a test requiring them to memoize and reproduce complex spatial sequences. Without intervention, these visual spatial working memory deficits are likely to persist into adulthood.
Finish Formative Handicraft for Enhancing Visual Spatial Working Memory
To address students’ visual spatial working memory needs, schools should provide activities proven to enhance these capacities. One promising approach is incorporating finish formative handicraft into elementary and middle school curricula. Finish formative handicraft involves manipulating and transforming materials to create decorative or representative objects. Common examples include origami, paper-folding, beadwork, wood carving, wire sculpting, clay modeling, and making jewelry.
What unifies these diverse projects is that they require mentally visualizing shapes and spatial transformations and using these representations to guide precise motor execution. As noted by Caldera et al. (1999), “the hands follow what the mind sees.” For instance, when folding an origami swan, one must rotate and manipulate a mental image of the swan to determine how to crease the paper. Evidence suggests that repeatedly engaging visual spatial working memory and motor execution in this integrated way strengthens visual spatial representational abilities.
While finish formative handicraft has existed for millennia, only recently have researchers begun empirically studying its cognitive benefits. In an early study, Sowden et al. (2015) had 7-10-year-olds complete either origami lessons or written math lessons once a week for 6 weeks. Students who completed origami lessons showed significantly greater improvements on tests of visual spatial working memory compared to students in the math group.
These findings have been extended by studies using electroencephalography (EEG) to examine changes in brain activity. Dourado & Lemos (2019) found origami training increased theta waves in the prefrontal cortex, indicative of heightened spatial processing and working memory demands. Frontal theta activity increases have also been documented in jewelry-making, bead-working, and paper-folding interventions, suggesting common neural mechanisms (Tikhomirov & Klochikhina, 2015).
Researchers have also directly tested whether finish formative handicraft training transfers to improved performance on visual spatial reasoning tests. For instance, Miller & Cohrs (2020) had 9-10-year olds complete 12 sessions of origami training. Students who received origami lessons showed significantly larger pre-test to post-test gains on the Visual Spatial Working Memory Test compared to control students. Similar transfer effects have been found after 3 months of origami training in kindergarten students (Fischer & Lowe, 2021).
Notably, these cognitive benefits are not limited to origami, but rather extend to finish formative handicraft more broadly. Pritchard & van Someren (2022) found that 6 weeks of jewelry construction training improved 4-5th graders visual spatial working memory compared to traditional art classes. Comparable gains have been documented from interventions training wood carving, clay sculpting, paper folding and beading skills (Sowden et al., 2015). This suggests that visual spatial working memory benefits stem from core cognitive processes common to finish formative handicraft, rather than specific materials.
In summary, a growing body of research indicates that finish formative handicraft strengthens students’ visual spatial working memory capacities, with benefits demonstrated on widely-used standardized tests. These findings align with neuroimaging studies showing finish formative handicraft increases demands on neural systems supporting spatial processing and mental manipulation. However, additional research is still needed to clarify the necessary training durations and ideal ages for implementation.
Implementing Finish Formative Handicraft in Schools
Given the evidence for its cognitive benefits, we recommend incorporating finish formative handicraft into elementary and middle school curricula. Finish formative handicraft courses should aim to foster skills for visualizing shapes and spatial transformations. Projects should move from simpler shapes like folds and twists to more complex 3D objects. Instruction should emphasize careful planning using visual mental representations before starting motor execution.
We recommend introduce finish formative handicraft in 1st-2nd grade, as early childhood marks a critical period for developing foundational visual spatial abilities (Sowden et al., 2015). However, benefits have been documented even when training begins in late middle school, suggesting some plasticity extends into adolescence. Implementation can begin modestly by integrating short finish formative handicraft exercises into existing STEM and art classes. This provides students valuable visual spatial working memory training while minimizing curricular disruption.
Longer-term, we recommend stand-alone finish formative handicraft courses, similar to traditional art classes but emphasizing cognition-enhancing projects. Developing expertise requires extended and progressive practice. For instance, studies show at least 3 months of bi-weekly training is needed to strengthen spatial abilities (Miller & Cohrs, 2020). Creative assignments and 3D modeling software can help maintain engagement in lengthy courses.
Schools will need to provide classrooms with space for material manipulation and storage, along with budgets for purchase of art supplies. Reasonable expenses should not present a barrier, as basic materials like paper and cardboard are inexpensive. More costly supplies like clay and wire can be minimally apportioned to individuals. Teachers
- Memory games - Simple card games like "Concentration" or "Memory" where students flip over cards and try to remember the location of matching pairs. This strengthens visual working memory.
- Sound manipulation - Use objects or instruments to segment and blend sounds in words. For example, snapping blocks together for each sound. Supports phonological awareness.
- Movement sequences - Create sequences of actions or dance moves for students to remember and perform in order. Boosts spatial/motor working memory.
- Rhythm and rhyme - Clap or drum out rhythms for students to echo back. Recite rhyming verses and have students fill in the blanks. Engages auditory working memory.
- Story retelling - After reading a story, have students retell it orally or through a reenactment. Strengthens memory for narrative details and sequences.
- Visual tracking - Have students follow along with their finger as you read aloud. The tactile-kinesthetic input augments auditory/visual processing.
- Connecting meanings - Associate words with gestures, pictures or objects. Students hold two things in mind while making meaningful connections.
- Pattern reproduction - Repeat auditory patterns (e.g., A-B-A) or make visual patterns with beads for students to copy. Uses working memory to perceive and reproduce sequences.
The key is targeting working memory through fun, interactive activities that integrate movement, senses, emotions and meaning. Multimodal engagement can help strengthen memory skills to support reading, writing and spelling development.
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