Rightstart says no C Rods for math?

[isitnaptime]

This is from the Rightstart website. What do you think? I was planning on doing RS and a small bit of Miquon or C Rod math labs. Maybe it will be too confusing and it is better to just stick with RS?

 

 

*

Does RightStart Mathematics use colored rods?

Researchers have found a number of problems with colored rods, where numbers 1-10 are represented by increasing lengths each in a different color. For young children each rod is a "one"; they do not understand why a rod twice as long is called a "two." Another problem is that 1 out of 12 children has some color deficiency and cannot see ten different colors.

A more serious limitation of rods 6-10 is that they cannot be visualized, or seen in the mind, because they are not grouped in fives. Try to imagine 8 apples in a row without any grouping--virtually impossible. Now imagine 5 apples as red and 3 as green--this you probably can do. The Romans grouped in fives (8 as VIII), and composers used two groups of five lines for writing music.

The purpose of a manipulative is not only to see the concept, but to help the learner construct a mental model, for example, to learn the facts. Visual models are quicker to recall than reciting a rhyme. Note also that adding two rods does not immediately give the sum.

Any concept that can be taught with colored rods can be taught with the AL abacus without the bother of little pieces.

[Cynful]

Well, I have to agree with RightStart. We began with MUS which uses their own sets of rods, but my daughter only memorized the colors and what number they should be. This did not help her visualize the amounts however and did not help her to see that she could manipulate the numbers. The RightStart abacus did just this and it really helped both her and my delayed son understand math better. Actually, it even helped me. :) JMO (just my opinion) of course.

[Spy Car]

We had a mega-thread discussing this (anyone remember the name of it) where the issue was discussed at great length.

 

For myself, I admire much of what Dr Cotter has to say about teaching math, but on this issue I think she is dead wrong.

 

If a child knows a One centimeter long Rod (which is a cube) equals "One" would they have difficulty seeing that a Rod that equals the length of two One Rods put together is equal to "Two." Does this seem "easy" for a young child to understand, or is it incomprehensible?

 

A Three Rod is the same length as 3-One Rods, or 1-One Rod and 1-Two Rod. Child's play, really.

 

Bill

[Carpe]

Researchers (1) have found a number of problems with colored rods, where numbers 1-10 are represented by increasing lengths each in a different color. For young children each rod is a "one"; they do not understand why a rod twice as long is called a "two." (2) Another problem is that 1 out of 12 children has some color deficiency and cannot see ten different colors (3).

A more serious limitation of rods 6-10 is that they cannot be visualized, or seen in the mind, because they are not grouped in fives. Try to imagine 8 apples in a row without any grouping--virtually impossible. (4) Now imagine 5 apples as red and 3 as green--this you probably can do. The Romans grouped in fives (8 as VIII), and composers used two groups of five lines for writing music.

The purpose of a manipulative is not only to see the concept, but to help the learner construct a mental model, for example, to learn the facts. Visual models are quicker to recall than reciting a rhyme. Note also that adding two rods does not immediately give the sum. (5)

Any concept that can be taught with colored rods can be taught with the AL abacus without the bother of little pieces. (6)

 

1. I'd be curious to see this research. Did the original have references so one could read for themselves?

2. My son had no problem with this concept at all. He understood, and it seems quite logical to me, that the rod that is two ones long is two.

3. This isn't really an issue. Even someone who is completely colorblind can see ten shades of gray. The point is not the colours, it's the lengths. They're colored for quicker location in a pile and for an alternate name (ie "red" or "2") but not for a mathematical reason.

4. I have no problem visualizing 8 apples in a single row. Is this unusual?

5. The point is that two rods end to end do not give the answer, the answer is discovered. Seeing that three light green (3) rods end to end is equal to a blue (9) rod, side by side, out of their own experimentation would, IMO, lead to a much deeper understanding than grouping in fives.

6. This might be true (I've never tried RightStart) but C-rods make for much better toys. As I type this my son is building a tiny stonehenge on the table in C-rods. Not something he could do with an abacus. ;)

[Kuovonne]

We had a mega-thread discussing this (anyone remember the name of it) where the issue was discussed at great length.

 

 

Here you go.

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=152125

 

For what it's worth, I was a huge supporter of RightStart before that thread. Then that thread made me finally decided to give Miquon and C-rods a try. I now like both programs so much that I do both.

[LittleIzumi]

:001_huh: I beg to differ. I was actually curious about this. My dd saw me make a "staircase" with C-rods for her little sister, and the next day we were playing with the rods and I held up a "5" rod and asked her what it was, no prompting or clues. She answered, "five," with a :001_huh: "DUH, Mom" look.

[stripe]

My kids have been known to sleep with their abacuses. They like them as percussion instruments. Sigh.

 

I know someone who is a major advocate of c-rods in the educational community, and my mom also thinks they are great. The C-rods don't interest my kids. Total waste of money. Then again, I did almost nothing with them! ha ha

 

I vastly prefer the 2 color abacus, and spent a lot of time on Right Start about 2 years ago, but have basically parted ways with both. If I had a choice, I'd go with the abacus. My son used some of the paper strips in MEP. I honestly don't know if the abacus had any lasting impact on his ability to do arithmetic.

[Spy Car]

Here you go.

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=152125

 

For what it's worth, I was a huge supporter of RightStart before that thread. Then that thread made me finally decided to give Miquon and C-rods a try. I now like both programs so much that I do both.

 

That's the one!

 

Thank you so much.

 

Bill

[stripe]

I remembered something I did to discuss the concept of 10s. I had them make tona of balls of clay (a bit bigger than a marble) and then put them in 10s on skewers, the sort used for grilling, with the sharp edge snipped off at the tip. They loved this.

 

I remembered reading this in Aharoni's book about arithmetic for parents.

[isitnaptime]

Here you go.

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=152125

 

For what it's worth, I was a huge supporter of RightStart before that thread. Then that thread made me finally decided to give Miquon and C-rods a try. I now like both programs so much that I do both.

 

Thank you for the link. I will read it tonight.

 

So, since you did both RS and Miquon, do you think together they are confusing for the child at all? Are they complementing or does it get to be too many concepts?

[Kuovonne]

So, since you did both RS and Miquon, do you think together they are confusing for the child at all? Are they complementing or does it get to be too many concepts?

 

I don't find it confusing. We tend to use the abacus for addition/subtraction concepts, and the rods for multiplication/division concepts. But, we have used both manipulatives for either concept. DD did have a strong grounding n the AL abacus before starting with rods and Miquon. She also had lots of time playing with the rods before we started using them for math.

 

The rods are better from a play-value point of view.

The abacus is better from a take-along, no small pieces to loose point of view.

 

I like both. I have lots of both. Then again, I like arithmetic and math manipulatives.

[Spy Car]

I don't find it confusing. We tend to use the abacus for addition/subtraction concepts, and the rods for multiplication/division concepts. But, we have used both manipulatives for either concept. DD did have a strong grounding n the AL abacus before starting with rods and Miquon. She also had lots of time playing with the rods before we started using them for math.

 

The rods are better from a play-value point of view.

The abacus is better from a take-along, no small pieces to loose point of view.

 

I like both. I have lots of both. Then again, I like arithmetic and math manipulatives.

 

I'm pleased to know it worked out :001_smile:

 

Bill

[chepyl]

I have a ton of Mortensen Math manipulative. All of their pieces have single units marked. The 10 rod has ten squares on top that show how many ones make 10. Do the Cuisinare rods have that? I would think that with out those markings it might be a little harder for little ones to differentiate the numbers, they would memorize the colors first.

 

We love our manipulative. But I also see the value of learning to group by 5s and 10s. (Mortensen does teach addition by grouping 10s.)

[Spy Car]

I have a ton of Mortensen Math manipulative. All of their pieces have single units marked. The 10 rod has ten squares on top that show how many ones make 10. Do the Cuisinare rods have that? I would think that with out those markings it might be a little harder for little ones to differentiate the numbers, they would memorize the colors first.

 

We love our manipulative. But I also see the value of learning to group by 5s and 10s. (Mortensen does teach addition by grouping 10s.)

 

The C Rods are not numbered. Children have no difficulty figuring out the values (by length) as they play with them. It is a non-issue.

 

Bill

[FO4UR]

I am a die-hard Cuisenaire Rod fan.:001_smile:

 

For my ds8 especially, the rods are the more intuitive manip. We own an alabacus, and I owned the Activities Manual and the RS Games for a long while. We enjoyed much of it, but the abacus isn't what my ds8 grabbed when he needed a quick help. He could simply look at the C rod box visualize the number bonds (like in Singapore Math).

[Crimson Wife]

I think there is just something about C-rods that inspires a love-'em or hate-'em reaction that's more emotional than rational. I know so many people who rave about how great C-rods are and I just personally don't get the appeal at all.

[Spy Car]

I think there is just something about C-rods that inspires a love-'em or hate-'em reaction that's more emotional than rational. I know so many people who rave about how great C-rods are and I just personally don't get the appeal at all.

 

The appeal for me was they allowed my son at a young age to totally understand how whole-parts math works. The could do sums and find differences himself. The could also make combinations of values (parts) that equalled a whole.

 

Through "play" he developed all the foundational skills necessary to understand the basics of the Singapore Math Model. Everything since has been "commentary."

 

It is a good reason to like C Rods.

 

Bill

[twoxcell]

The C Rods are not numbered. Children have no difficulty figuring out the values (by length) as they play with them. It is a non-issue.

:iagree:

[Ellie]

I think RS is trying to sell its own product. And there's nothing wrong with that; they just didn't have to make comments about a different methodology to make its own look better/acceptable.

 

My dds and I don't need manipulatives. We would all have been crazy people if we'd had to.:glare:

 

But when I do use rods, I start with Mathematics Made Meaningful, which has the dc doing lots of things with the rods long before the rods are given number values. Cuinsenaire rods are the only manipulatives, other than base 10 blocks, that make sense to me.

[Ellesmere]

[

[stripe]

I think RS is trying to sell its own product. And there's nothing wrong with that; they just didn't have to make comments about a different methodology to make its own look better/acceptable.

But Joan Cotter is hardly the first or only person in the universe to express misgivings about number rods. She did start out using them, and I like knowing informed opinions on things. I think it's valuable. I don't think bashing c-rods is in any way integral to RS-- I am not sure how much effort she devotes to them, but knowing her opinion on their drawbacks is valuable, just like CM followers might be interested in knowing why she rejected unit studies. Ron Aharoni, on the other hand, devotes quite a bit of timeto why he dislikes c-rods.

 

Anyway you can easily make your own 2 color abacus. The one Cotter/RS sells is not required for the program.

[Spy Car]

:iagree:

My four year old first played with the rods when I bought them. She did nothing but play with them and learn the values for each rod for a week. Then I put them away until two months later and found that she needed no reminding about the values of each rod. I was thinking today of how much I appreciated your input about Miquon (esp. using the First Grade Diary) as I watched my daughter eagerly dive into the rods and use some lab sheets.

 

I'm really pleased it is working for you! :001_smile:

 

Bill

[Spy Car]

But Joan Cotter is hardly the first or only person in the universe to express misgivings about number rods. She did start out using them, and I like knowing informed opinions on things. I think it's valuable. I don't think bashing c-rods is in any way integral to RS-- I am not sure how much effort she devotes to them, but knowing her opinion on their drawbacks is valuable, just like CM followers might be interested in knowing why she rejected unit studies. Ron Aharoni, on the other hand, devotes quite a bit of timeto why he dislikes c-rods.

 

Anyway you can easily make your own 2 color abacus. The one Cotter/RS sells is not required for the program.

 

We went through Ron Ahroni's objections in the other thread. They are invalid, and based on an Israeli program that used C Rods and evidently used them badly. Any manipulate can look bad if you pair it with a bad math program, that is true of C Rods and an Abacus alike.

 

Bill

[justasque]

Also, my girls love to play with the rods together (I stay close to make sure the youngest doesn't swallow any; so far, she's just thrilled to play with her big sister's stuff) and I don't find them to be a bother.

 

I have this great IKEA product. It's a wooden box full of oversized c-rod-like blocks. They have dots on one side to show the numbers - the "one" cube has one dot, the "two" block has two dots in the same place they'd be if the block was made up of two "one" blocks, etc. The super-cool thing is they all fit perfectly in the box, which is 10 units long. You can put them in the box a zillion different ways, but to make them all fit, you have to make up groups of ten. If you have them arranged 5+2+2, there's space left for a 1, and if you don't fill that space you'll have a 1-block left over when the box is full. At first my kids liked taking the blocks out, then at a later age they liked putting them in. It's a really cool toy for the younger set.

 

Didn't they make double-sized c-rods at one time?

 

We don't discriminate about math manipulatives around here; we love them all. The more ways to visualize relationships, the better.

[wapiti]

Can I ask a dumb question about C-rods? It's a bit hard to tell from the pictures I see on-line. Are they solid rods of different lengths, with the number on the side, or do the rods themselves come apart? How would they compare to this product, unit cubes that attach to each other: http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/seo/ca%7CproductSubCat~~p%7C2534374302106430~~f%7C/Assortments/Lakeshore/ShopByCategory/mathematics/viewall.jsp ?

 

I'm planning to supplement math for ds5 and ds 3 this year, long story, even though they have fantastic materials in their classrooms. Thanks for any thoughts :)

[Spy Car]

Can I ask a dumb question about C-rods? It's a bit hard to tell from the pictures I see on-line. Are they solid rods of different lengths, with the number on the side, or do the rods themselves come apart? How would they compare to this product, unit cubes that attach to each other: http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/seo/ca%7CproductSubCat~~p%7C2534374302106430~~f%7C/Assortments/Lakeshore/ShopByCategory/mathematics/viewall.jsp ?

 

I'm planning to supplement math for ds5 and ds 3 this year, long story, even though they have fantastic materials in their classrooms. Thanks for any thoughts :)

 

C Rod are solid pieces of either plastic or wood. They are the length of the normal value in centimeters and 1cm in width and depth. So a Ten value rod is 10x1x1 cm.

 

They do not come apart and do not have numbers on them.

 

Beware that there are some scored/linking manipulatives that now carry the "Cuisenaire" name, but they are NOT classic C Rods. Avoid them!!!

 

Bill

[Ellie]

But Joan Cotter is hardly the first or only person in the universe to express misgivings about number rods. She did start out using them, and I like knowing informed opinions on things. I think it's valuable. I don't think bashing c-rods is in any way integral to RS-- I am not sure how much effort she devotes to them, but knowing her opinion on their drawbacks is valuable, just like CM followers might be interested in knowing why she rejected unit studies. Ron Aharoni, on the other hand, devotes quite a bit of timeto why he dislikes c-rods.

 

Anyway you can easily make your own 2 color abacus. The one Cotter/RS sells is not required for the program.

Even so, I'm guessing that the number of people who find value in C rods is far greater than those who don't.

[wapiti]

C Rod are solid pieces of either plastic or wood. They are the length of the normal value in centimeters and 1cm in width and depth. So a Ten value rod is 10x1x1 cm.

 

They do not come apart and do not have numbers on them.

 

Beware that there are some scored/linking manipulatives that now carry the "Cuisenaire" name, but they are NOT classic C Rods. Avoid them!!!

 

Bill

 

If you don't mind me asking, what are the strengths of the classic C rods, as compared to those imitations? Are they marked at all? how do you know what the value is - simply by looking at the length? Maybe I need to hunt down some youtube demonstrations or something.... ETA, tell me I don't need a curriculum for these.

Edited July 19, 2011 by wapiti

[Spy Car]

If you don't mind me asking, what are the strengths of the classic C rods, as compared to those imitations? Are they marked at all? how do you know what the value is - simply by looking at the length? Maybe I need to hunt down some youtube demonstrations or something....

 

Yes you know the value by length. There is also a color cue, but length is an outstanding way for children to (in the words of Jean Piaget) "conserve value." but they are not marked. There are good reasons for this.

 

There is an understandable anxiety among some parents that their children won't comprehend the value of rods without numbers or scored sections they can count, but it simply isn't a problem.

 

Parent after parent can tell you how quickly their children understood the rods after a little play.

 

The advantage of seeing unified values expressed in rods (as opposed to things that need counting) can't be over-estimated, especially if the child is going to continue into a whole-parts math program like Singapore.

 

Bill

[Wutzz]

C Rod are solid pieces of either plastic or wood. They are the length of the normal value in centimeters and 1cm in width and depth. So a Ten value rod is 10x1x1 cm.

 

They do not come apart and do not have numbers on them.

 

Beware that there are some scored/linking manipulatives that now carry the "Cuisenaire" name, but they are NOT classic C Rods. Avoid them!!!

 

Bill

 

All this talk about Cuisenaire Rods is making me HAVE to have them! I love the AL Abacus but I'm feeling the need to get my hands on those rods.

 

Would this be an acceptable set??

 

http://rainbowresource.com/product/sku/006380/1311045873-1238765

[wapiti]

Yes you know the value by length. There is also a color cue, but length is an outstanding way for children to (in the words of Jean Piaget) "conserve value." but they are not marked. There are good reasons for this.

 

There is an understandable anxiety among some parents that their children won't comprehend the value of rods without numbers or scored sections they can count, but it simply isn't a problem.

 

Parent after parent can tell you how quickly their children understood the rods after a little play.

 

The advantage of seeing unified values expressed in rods (as opposed to things that need counting) can't be over-estimated, especially if the child is going to continue into a whole-parts math program like Singapore.

 

Bill

 

OK, thank you, Bill! I appreciate your thoughts :)

[Ellesmere]

All this talk about Cuisenaire Rods is making me HAVE to have them! I love the AL Abacus but I'm feeling the need to get my hands on those rods.

 

Would this be an acceptable set??

 

http://rainbowresource.com/product/sku/006380/1311045873-1238765

I'm pretty sure that is the set we have. :) Bill will tell you for sure if those are acceptable.

 

We picked up a set of rods, the First Grade Diary, Lab Sheet Annotations, and Notes to Teachers books. The Diary is only $5.50 @ RR and well worth it.

 

You can get the workbooks individually or all of them through RR for just over $30, too. We only have the Orange and Red book at this point.

[Spy Car]

All this talk about Cuisenaire Rods is making me HAVE to have them! I love the AL Abacus but I'm feeling the need to get my hands on those rods.

 

Would this be an acceptable set??

 

http://rainbowresource.com/product/sku/006380/1311045873-1238765

 

Perfect :001_smile:

 

Bill

[isitnaptime]

Here you go.

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=152125

 

For what it's worth, I was a huge supporter of RightStart before that thread. Then that thread made me finally decided to give Miquon and C-rods a try. I now like both programs so much that I do both.

 

This was a great thread to read though. 12 pages if you are interested in this topic.

[Spy Car]

ETA:I like to suggest people get a set of (10) base-ten "flats" to be "hundred values" to go with the C Rods. That way the Orange rods are Tens and the rest of the C Rods serve as Units.

 

Then you can model 3 digit numbers from the very introduction of math exposure and the children totally get it. It is not explicitly in Miquon, but so easy to add.

 

We used "math names" to start, so 365 was 3-Hundreds 6-tens 5-Units (or Ones) rather than three hundred sixty-five. 1-Ten 2-Units rather than Twelve and so on. This really helps at the start when children might get tripped up by semantics.

 

Bill

[isitnaptime]

Perfect :001_smile:

 

Bill

 

Are some rods more square? My white ones are a perfect square. I can tell the others were cut off a longer piece and were squished while they were cut. It bugs me!! If it matters I bought the 74 pack from Amazon that comes in a box with a clear window on the front.

[Spy Car]

Are some rods more square? My white ones are a perfect square. I can tell the others were cut off a longer piece and were squished while they were cut. It bugs me!! If it matters I bought the 74 pack from Amazon that comes in a box with a clear window on the front.

 

The One Unit Rods ought to be a perfect 1 cm cube. The rest should be perfect rectangular prisms.

 

A 155 set is ideal.

 

Bill

[Kuovonne]

ETA:I like to suggest people get a set of (10) base-ten "flats" to be "hundred values" to go with the C Rods. That way the Orange rods are Tens and the rest of the C Rods serve as Units.

 

And I like to follow up Bill's sugguestion and say don't stop with base10 flats. Get a whole Base10 set with a thousand cube. That way you can show four digit numbers. Plus, then you can show that the thousand cube and the unit cube are similar shapes, which helps in naming numbers in the thousands, millions, trillions, etc.

 

Having a set of Base10 blocks in a different color can also give you more ones and tens in a different color, which can also help when teaching some concepts.

[Spy Car]

And I like to follow up Bill's sugguestion and say don't stop with base10 flats. Get a whole Base10 set with a thousand cube. That way you can show four digit numbers. Plus, then you can show that the thousand cube and the unit cube are similar shapes, which helps in naming numbers in the thousands, millions, trillions, etc.

 

Having a set of Base10 blocks in a different color can also give you more ones and tens in a different color, which can also help when teaching some concepts.

 

I really wanted a set of (10) Thousand Cubes made out of that dense foam (that blocks sometimes are made of) but never found any, and even a really well priced base-10 plastic cube was $6 a piece and I didn't want to spend $60 on a set of ten.

 

Bill

[Spy Car]

ETA: Right Start sells a very inexpensive set of base-10 "cards" that serve well as a pictorial form of manipulatives when doing 4 decimal place numbers and also cards called "place value cards" that are teriffic for early place value work.

 

Bill

[wapiti]

This was a great thread to read though. 12 pages if you are interested in this topic.

:iagree:

 

Really, I was supposed to be asleep an hour ago, and now I'm considering yet another math curriculum, for my young ones (for whom I'm already spending an awful lot to send to school...). Thank you :glare: :D.

[Spy Car]

:iagree:

 

Really, I was supposed to be asleep an hour ago, and now I'm considering yet another math curriculum, for my young ones (for whom I'm already spending an awful lot to send to school...). Thank you :glare: :D.

 

How old are the young ones?

 

Bill

[wapiti]

How old are the young ones?

 

Bill

 

Ds5 (just turned 5) is starting K, though his teacher isn't...how can I put this...as good a fit as my ds8s' teachers were at that level (same school, public charter Montessori). His math foundation is good, and he's as capable and interested as his brothers were at that age, but his skills aren't nearly as far along. The Montessori math curriculum is fantastic, but it's nothing without a teacher presenting the materials in an organized manner appropriate to the particular child. Ds3 (just turned 3) is starting preschool there next month, but his teacher isn't who I wanted and is a bit of an unknown quantity. He's not ready to learn math yet, though he likes to pretend to "do math" alongside ds5. Dd2, my curly girl, will not be left out of anything her older brothers are doing, and she'll be the only one home with me in the mornings besides dd10, who is hs-ing.

 

So, I'll be looking at the larger set of the C-rods later today (where should I buy it?), and probably Miquon as well. I liked the description of the rods as something that can be "played" with - the two youngest can play with them before they're ready to learn math. We have a few of the blue-and-yellow-bead abacuses (abaci?) that I picked up for free at a garage sale a few years ago. I don't think they'd be particularly useful for me unless I actually get instructions or RS for them.

[Spy Car]

Ds5 (just turned 5) is starting K, though his teacher isn't...how can I put this...as good a fit as my ds8s' teachers were at that level (same school, public charter Montessori). His math foundation is good, and he's as capable and interested as his brothers were at that age, but his skills aren't nearly as far along. The Montessori math curriculum is fantastic, but it's nothing without a teacher presenting the materials in an organized manner appropriate to the particular child. Ds3 (just turned 3) is starting preschool there next month, but his teacher isn't who I wanted and is a bit of an unknown quantity. He's not ready to learn math yet, though he likes to pretend to "do math" alongside ds5. Dd2, my curly girl, will not be left out of anything her older brothers are doing, and she'll be the only one home with me in the mornings besides dd10, who is hs-ing.

 

So, I'll be looking at the larger set of the C-rods later today (where should I buy it?), and probably Miquon as well. I liked the description of the rods as something that can be "played" with - the two youngest can play with them before they're ready to learn math. We have a few of the blue-and-yellow-bead abacuses (abaci?) that I picked up for free at a garage sale a few years ago. I don't think they'd be particularly useful for me unless I actually get instructions or RS for them.

 

Get a set of C Rods. Let them play. Wait to see what a 3 year old can learn while playing ;)

 

Here is a little Pre-Miquon Activites Book a woman named Miranda Hughes put together:

 

http://www.nurturedbylove.ca/resources/cuisenairebook.pdf

 

The Miquon approach is totally in keeping with the spirit of Montessori. I think you and your children would love it. We did.

 

Bill

[wapiti]

Get a set of C Rods. Let them play. Wait to see what a 3 year old can learn while playing ;)

 

Here is a little Pre-Miquon Activites Book a woman named Miranda Hughes put together:

 

http://www.nurturedbylove.ca/resources/cuisenairebook.pdf

 

The Miquon approach is totally in keeping with the spirit of Montessori. I think you and your children would love it. We did.

 

Bill

 

Thank you! This is very helpful. Now, if only I didn't have to wait for the C-rods to be shipped :D

[wapiti]

Let them play.

 

I have a funny story, though it's about the *gasp, horrors* Unifix cubes (not to worry; the C-Rods are en route). I picked up the cubes today at a teacher store, and before I had finished unloading the car, the young ones opened the box of cubes and began playing with them. Then ds5 started in - he got a blank sheet of unlined paper and spontaneously began doing math :lol:. He's making his own worksheet of addition to 20 using the cubes. I still haven't said a word.

[Spy Car]

I have a funny story, though it's about the *gasp, horrors* Unifix cubes (not to worry; the C-Rods are en route). I picked up the cubes today at a teacher store, and before I had finished unloading the car, the young ones opened the box of cubes and began playing with them. Then ds5 started in - he got a blank sheet of unlined paper and spontaneously began doing math :lol:. He's making his own worksheet of addition to 20 using the cubes. I still haven't said a word.

 

That's awesome!

 

Bill

[Nart]

I am using RightStart Level A with C-rods in addition to the abacus and tally (popscicle) sticks. This is how the lesson last night went with my 4 year old.

 

Lesson 17, second activity - Build 2 groups of tens with tally sticks.

Set out the sticks, cajole him into putting the sticks into one groups of five, then another group of five next to it, repeat underneath with 10 new sticks. without making something else. Point out the 10's and ask him a good name for them.

 

His answer "look I made fences! 4 of them. They would be good for keeping a horse or a cow inside. Let's go get the little horse..."

 

Ugh! So I get out the C-Rods and ask him to find a 10. He picks up an orange rod. I say get another orange, how many is that.

His answer (while looking at me like duh, of course), "two-tens!" Then we put them in the C-Rod track and to see what number was written when you line up two tens - (of course 20). Repeat with several orange sticks up to 10 orange stick (100!)

 

I am officially putting the tally (popsicle) sticks away.

[boscopup]

Bill, you'll be proud of me. I pulled out the C-rods today for DS2, and we built stairs, then filled in to make a square. I think this was the second time I'd pulled them out, and he already is starting to get the idea of which one is which value. DS1 even knew the values, and I've not officially used them with him. :tongue_smilie:

 

Oh, and since they were out, I used them to demonstrate division with a remainder (what DS1 was working on). He didn't need it, but I showed it to him anyway. He thought it was cool. :D Then DS2 made the same division problem again with the rods, not that he knows anything about division. He did seem to pick up on the fact that 2 ten rods plus a 5 rod was 25, which surprised me, since he doesn't count real high yet (he counts to 100 "the fast way", jumping from 20 to 80, 90, 100 :lol:).

 

I've asked a friend to order the First Grade Diary for me when she orders her homeschool stuff. I didn't realize it was so cheap!

[Spy Car]

Bill, you'll be proud of me. I pulled out the C-rods today for DS2, and we built stairs, then filled in to make a square. I think this was the second time I'd pulled them out, and he already is starting to get the idea of which one is which value. DS1 even knew the values, and I've not officially used them with him. :tongue_smilie:

 

Oh, and since they were out, I used them to demonstrate division with a remainder (what DS1 was working on). He didn't need it, but I showed it to him anyway. He thought it was cool. :D Then DS2 made the same division problem again with the rods, not that he knows anything about division. He did seem to pick up on the fact that 2 ten rods plus a 5 rod was 25, which surprised me, since he doesn't count real high yet (he counts to 100 "the fast way", jumping from 20 to 80, 90, 100 :lol:).

 

I've asked a friend to order the First Grade Diary for me when she orders her homeschool stuff. I didn't realize it was so cheap!

 

See this is what amazes me. Really young children CAN understand these things just through play. I only wish we had started sooner. Even starting hard-upon my son's 4th birthday I got to see how this kind of discovery and play helped him develop a natural affinity with math. And it was all in the spirit of play.

 

Yes, the First Grade Diary is quite inexpensive. You may be on to a good deal of her methodology already (I don't know). I just know this well-intended Dad felt like he was in such a quandary over "how" to introduce math in a way that would both meet my goals for a deeper (Liping Ma style) math education, and was enjoyable for my child and me. Reading the diary got my creative juices flowing.

 

Again, I am afraid of over-selling what is a simple little book about one (very talented) woman's experiences teaching a year of introductory math. But for me it was just the "mentorship" I needed.

 

What I was excited to see with my own eyes (and you are too) is if you give children the right tools that they can reason out the fundamental logic of math at a very early age. I think it makes the subject akin to having a "natural language" that they are comfortable in as a normal part of their childhood.

 

And yes, I am very proud of you :)

 

Bill