The National Science Foundation awarded a $937,260 Project Grant to The Regents of the University of Colorado under the STEM Education program (CFDA 47.076) to study how multi-digit number names and written symbols guide early elementary students' attention, memory, and place value learning. Over three years from July 2022 to June 2025, the University will conduct three experimental studies with kindergarteners using eye-tracking technology, assessments of students' place value knowledge, and different instructional practices for representing multi-digit numbers. The research seeks to understand how rudimentary understanding of multi-digit symbols relates to gaze patterns during instruction and connects students' learning to teaching methods and prior knowledge. Findings are intended to inform how teachers describe multi-digit numbers and best present them to students, with the goal of creating resources better supporting number learning. This award supports NSF's mission to advance STEM education through research and development of innovative teaching tools.