Countries in the world have been working for their own citizens to develop modeling competencies to deal with complex real-world problems in their education programs. Therefore, there are numerous research studies related to the development of modeling competencies of students, starting from the first years of school and continuing on through the years of higher education. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to assess cognitive modeling competencies of fourth-grade primary school students with the help of the Music Course Problem and to identify specifically what students are capable of in terms of making assumptions, mathematical reasoning and interpretation.

For this purpose, a qualitative study was conducted at a university-foundation primary school in the city center of a large province in Turkey during the 2016-2017 academic year. From a fourth-grade classroom, eight students included in the two-focus groups were selected using the criterion sampling technique. Each focus group of four students was videotaped as they worked on a model-eliciting activity of the Music Course Problem. The conversations of the groups were transcribed, examined along with the students’ written work, and then analyzed through the lens of the Maaß’s cognitive modeling competencies.

The initial results showed that primary fourth-grade students could successfully work with model-eliciting problems; however, they faced particular challenges in formulating a mathematical problem from the real-world problem through making assumptions, mathematical reasoning and interpretation.

Keywords: Primary school students, modeling competencies, music course problem.