# Localizing arithmetic in the developing bilingual brain

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SAN ANTONIO · 2020 · $240,114

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY. Arithmetic facts, such as multiplication tables, are learned through verbal rehearsal. In
turn, children move from solving problems procedurally (e.g., counting on) to retrieving them from verbal memory.
In monolingual children this transition is paralleled by a shift in the supporting brain networks from reliance on
the intraparietal sulcus (IPS), involved in numerical calculation, to relying more on language areas, e.g., left
middle temporal and superior temporal gyri (MTG/STG). For bilinguals, models of arithmetic suggest that this
retrieval process occurs in only one language, or alternatively, that discrete memory stores exist for math facts
in each language. Critically, these models are inconsistent with the growing body of research supporting
interconnected and overlapping language networks in the bilingual brain, modulated by factors such as language
proficiency. This exploratory R21 takes an interdisciplinary perspective, integrating math cognition, cognitive
development, and bilingualism research, with the goal of determining if the neural infrastructure for arithmetic in
bilingual children is shared or separate across their languages. The work builds on findings that bilingual children
show a qualitatively similar language-like brain response during multiplication fact verification in both the
language of learning arithmetic (LA+) and the other language (LA-). In two aims, functional magnetic resonance
imaging (fMRI) will be used in a cross-sectional sample of 3rd through 5th grade bilinguals to determine 1) the
neural networks supporting multiplication fact verification in each language, and 2) if practice in LA- changes
these activation patterns. The research focuses on single-digit multiplication given its strong link to language,
and uses state-of-the-art methods (e.g., functional localizers and multivariate analysis) to compare activation
patterns. Children will judge if the last of three numbers is the correct product of the first two, which will be
presented as spoken number words in English (LA+) and Spanish (LA-), separately (e.g., 2 3 6 versus 2 3 8). If
arithmetic facts follow bilingual verbal representation patterns, then LA+ and LA- will show overlapping activation
patterns in language areas, with recruitment of additional resources for more effortful retrieval. If arithmetic facts
are instead language-specific, as models suggest, then separate neural networks should be observed for LA+
and LA-. In Aim 2, a subset of children will return for a second fMRI session after completing training with
multiplication facts in LA-. LA- should show increased activation in language areas and decreased activation in
additional resources, becoming more similar to LA+ in line with developmental changes. The findings from this
research will inform a new bilingual arithmetic model (BAM), which future research can build on to study other
types of math concepts across the spectrum of bilinguals. It is essential to consider t...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9917167
- **Project number:** 1R21HD098878-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SAN ANTONIO
- **Principal Investigator:** Nicole Yvonne Wicha
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $240,114
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-01-22 → 2021-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9917167

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9917167, Localizing arithmetic in the developing bilingual brain (1R21HD098878-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9917167. Licensed CC0.

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