# Longitudinal Investigation into Declarative and Procedural Memory Brain Systems Supporting the Development of Math Skills

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA · 2022 · $571,146

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Although mathematics skills are crucial for academic achievement, future job opportunities in adulthood, and
healthcare-related decisions, the fundamental cognitive and neural mechanisms that underpin learning of basic
math skills remain poorly understood. Understanding the mechanisms and specific factors that lead to better
math learning is essential for those endeavoring to improve targeted remediation techniques for those with math
learning difficulties. Despite the fact that long-term learning and memory systems have been carefully studied
for over a century, and are well-known to play a major role in related domains such as language and reading,
their role of in shaping learning and the developmental trajectory of math skill acquisition remains largely
unknown. Knowledge of these mechanisms can provide a major theoretical advance in our understanding of
math learning and development, which in turn can reveal critical leverage points for improving early math
education and interventions to narrow the math-achievement gap for those with persistent math deficits. There
is therefore a critical need for a definitive, systematic study of the specific mechanisms by which long-term
memory systems support the acquisition and development of foundational math skills. Continuing to overlook
the role of these memory systems in mathematics will impede theories of math development and practical efforts
to improve long-term efficacy of interventions for children with math difficulties.
We will implement a repeated-measures longitudinal design examining two key memory systems, declarative
(DM) and procedural memory (PM), and their contributions to developmental trajectories of a range of math skills
in children in 1st through 5th grades. To test specific hypotheses about the link between each memory system
and different math skills, we will collect measures of standardized math achievement, arithmetic skills, and basic
quantity processing. DM and PM systems have been well characterized at the neural level, so to deepen
understanding of the mechanisms linking math and memory systems, we will also collect functional neuroimaging
measures at both time-points to characterize learning-related changes in both brain and behavior. Repeating
each measure at each time-point will make it possible to account for initial variability in and prior existing relations
between variables, thus allowing us to predict changes in a particular math outcome. By revealing links between
specific memory systems and math-related changes in brain and behavior, this project will provide the most
comprehensive picture to date of how long-term memory mechanisms subserve math learning. This in turn will
help take much of the guesswork out of determining the target of interventions aimed at improving educational
outcomes for children with and without math learning difficulties.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10480784
- **Project number:** 5R01HD100429-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Tanya Marie Evans
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $571,146
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-09-04 → 2025-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10480784

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10480784, Longitudinal Investigation into Declarative and Procedural Memory Brain Systems Supporting the Development of Math Skills (5R01HD100429-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10480784. Licensed CC0.

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