Handwork and Geometry in the Early Years: Curricular Movements (1890-2020)

Background: Research in the history of mathematics education makes it possible to identify the links between manual practices and the teaching of geometry in the early years since the insertion of the subject Handwork, at the end of the 19th century, to the present time. Objectives: Analyse the interconnections between manual practices and the teaching of geometry developed by the school culture of primary education in São Paulo, since the early Republic. Design: The curricular regulations of the state of São Paulo and the national guidelines – PCN and BNCC – and school manuals that circulated in each historical moment are mobilised together with the results of research already developed in the area. The documents were collated and analysed to produce an understandable and sustainable historical narrative, based on evidence and controls. Data collection and analysis: The study inventoried research results and analysed teaching programs in the State of São Paulo, national guidelines at the end of the 20th century, and school manuals from different periods. Setting and participants: The research sources are documentary, most of them available in the UFSC Digital Repository. Results: The documental examination indicated that manual practices actively participate in the school culture and cause changes, from time to time. Handwork change its status from a school subject to a geometry teaching methodology, intended for the early school years, which we observe to this day. Conclusions: This research concluded that the understanding of the historical perspective contributes to reflection on the current educational problems, on the debate about how to mobilise tools for geometry teaching, questioning the feasibility or not of handwork acting as an appropriate methodology for the first explorations of geometric properties.