Resumen

The literacy cycle has been configured as a new space and time for the teaching of mathematics. Several skills and methodologies must be developed in early elementary education to ensure the mathematical literacy of children. In this article we report on astudy based on research-action in schools that explored strategies and procedures employed by students to solve problems through addition or subtraction. We note that counting is structured as the main strategy for implementing the arithmetic operations ofdifferent types of actions. In some cases, the problems and actions are processed to give priority to the strategy of counting. We understand that the difficulty to quantify and manage sets occurs because of the difficulty of organizing a mental structure or hierarchy, which are fundamental to the notion of numbers.