C-Rods: I'm a believer!

[lea1]

Breakthrough! I finally get it; I finally understand the power of the c-rods!:lol:

 

So today I made a quick trip to our local homeschool consignment store and bought a large set of c-rods (after I just sold my set and Miquon books a couple of weeks ago). I also purchased three different books.

 

One book (I think it's calls Picture Puzzles) has crossword puzzles they work with the rods. All of the Down and Across questions are math equations. This book is for 1st through 6th grade (I think) so it starts out with equations like 1 + 2 = ?. Another book is addition and subtraction with single digits, or something like that and the third is more like a riddle book and you have to find the correct rod(s) to solve the riddle. All three of the books are awesome and fun and made dh and I want to do it too! The boys (both K'ers) were asking to do "just one more" of the crossword puzzles this evening after dinner.

 

A little background info, for those who might be interested. We started out the year using Singapore 1A. They seemed to be doing pretty well with addition under 10 until we ran across problems like 4 + ? = 6. Then I knew they were not understanding it to the degree that they should and that I wanted them to. We happened to have Right Start A so I dropped back and started working on that with them. It is a bit too easy in places so I have been combining lessons and skipping parts here and there to make it fit us better. My issue with RS is I don't care for the way it jumps around so much during a lesson, from a teaching perspective and also because one of my sons loses focus too easily during the transitions. After reading many threads on this forum about c-rods, I decided to try them again. I had already tried them with Miquon and just really could not "get" it.

 

Now, finally, I get it. I am so thankful because this is exactly what my two sons need and, best of all, it's fun! They will have a ball solving the puzzles/problems in these books and, in the process, they will learn their add/subtract facts, plus a lot more. I am excited. Thank you Bill and also everyone else who takes the time to reply to all of the math posts. I sure appreciate your help.:lol:

[blondeviolin]

Once you love rods, it's not a far-off way to loving miquon. ;)

 

My 5yo has sailed through those types of problems in Singapore and I credit the rods for such a strong concrete foundation.

[lea1]

Once you love rods, it's not a far-off way to loving miquon. ;)

 

Hmmm, I hadn't thought about that but, well, maybe so.:tongue_smilie: We'll see. I certainly won't rule it out at this point.:001_smile:

[Spy Car]

I thought love was only true in fairy tales

Meant for someone else but not for me.

Math was out to get me

That's the way it seemed.

Disappointment haunted all my dreams.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

I couldn't leave them if I tried.

 

I thought math was more or less a given thing,

Seems the more I gave the less I got.

What's the use of Saxon?

All you get is pain

When I needed sunshine I got rain.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

And I know that two and three makes five.

[rgrin]

Breakthrough! I finally get it; I finally understand the power of the c-rods!:lol:

 

So today I made a quick trip to our local homeschool consignment store and bought a large set of c-rods (after I just sold my set and Miquon books a couple of weeks ago). I also purchased three different books.

 

One book (I think it's calls Picture Puzzles) has crossword puzzles they work with the rods. All of the Down and Across questions are math equations. This book is for 1st through 6th grade (I think) so it starts out with equations like 1 + 2 = ?. Another book is addition and subtraction with single digits, or something like that and the third is more like a riddle book and you have to find the correct rod(s) to solve the riddle. All three of the books are awesome and fun and made dh and I want to do it too! The boys (both K'ers) were asking to do "just one more" of the crossword puzzles this evening after dinner.

 

I just got my first set of C-rods today, and I would love to know what these "play" books are! Thanks.

[kubiac]

I thought love was only true in fairy tales

Meant for someone else but not for me.

Math was out to get me

That's the way it seemed.

Disappointment haunted all my dreams.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

I couldn't leave them if I tried.

 

I thought math was more or less a given thing,

Seems the more I gave the less I got.

What's the use of Saxon?

All you get is pain

When I needed sunshine I got rain.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

And I know that two and three makes five.

 

How do we archive this forever and ever? :lol:

[Amber in AUS]

I'd love to know the actual titles of the puzzle books your kiddos are working on please :)

[Sophie]

I thought love was only true in fairy tales

Meant for someone else but not for me.

Math was out to get me

That's the way it seemed.

Disappointment haunted all my dreams.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

I couldn't leave them if I tried.

 

I thought math was more or less a given thing,

Seems the more I gave the less I got.

What's the use of Saxon?

All you get is pain

When I needed sunshine I got rain.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

And I know that two and three makes five.

 

:lol::lol::lol:

 

That's it! I need to get a set as well....

[KristenR]

I thought love was only true in fairy tales

Meant for someone else but not for me.

Math was out to get me

That's the way it seemed.

Disappointment haunted all my dreams.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

I couldn't leave them if I tried.

 

I thought math was more or less a given thing,

Seems the more I gave the less I got.

What's the use of Saxon?

All you get is pain

When I needed sunshine I got rain.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

And I know that two and three makes five.

 

:lol: SOOOO True! Awesome Bill, awesome!

[MyLittleBears]

Believer here too! Bought them, sold them, rebought them, bought miquon. I'm in love!!!!!:001_tt1:

[FO4UR]

:001_smile: and we need links to those books.:iagree:

 

 

 

 

I'm glad you like them. I haven't become a believer yet. To be fair my son hasn't used them very long. He mostly just plays with them. He wants no part of any directed activity using the c-rods.

 

Let him play. Sit down to play with him. Let him lead, and insert some mathy talk sparingly. (We ran out of oranges, but 2 yellows are equal...we can make this side yellow...)

 

He may be more open to direction after the novelty of the rods has worn off.

[katiebeth1]

I dont' know what c rods are?...is this something you use as a supplement to your math curriculum to help teach math facts?

 

or is this a whole curriculum itself?

katie beth

[MyLittleBears]

I dont' know what c rods are?...is this something you use as a supplement to your math curriculum to help teach math facts?

 

or is this a whole curriculum itself?

katie beth

 

Cuisenaire rods used to teach maths fact conceptually. Miquon relies heavily on these but they can be used with any program.:001_smile:

Edited October 26, 2011 by MyLittleBears

[lea1]

I thought love was only true in fairy tales

Meant for someone else but not for me.

Math was out to get me

That's the way it seemed.

Disappointment haunted all my dreams.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

I couldn't leave them if I tried.

 

I thought math was more or less a given thing,

Seems the more I gave the less I got.

What's the use of Saxon?

All you get is pain

When I needed sunshine I got rain.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

And I know that two and three makes five.

 

:lol:That is too funny Bill! Started my day off with a laugh.

 

I am searching for links to the books. Here is one of them:

http://www.amazon.com/One-Digit-Addition-Subtraction-Cuisenaire-Workbook/dp/0914040219/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&qid=1319637231&sr=8-15

[ScoutTN]

I thought love was only true in fairy tales

Meant for someone else but not for me.

Math was out to get me

That's the way it seemed.

Disappointment haunted all my dreams.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

I couldn't leave them if I tried.

 

I thought math was more or less a given thing,

Seems the more I gave the less I got.

What's the use of Saxon?

All you get is pain

When I needed sunshine I got rain.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

And I know that two and three makes five.

 

:lol::lol::lol::lol:

Excellent!

[Ellie]

I"ll tell you when I became a believer: When I bought Mathematics Made Meaningful and started working through the task cards.

 

A friend kept raving about c-rods. Her dc were a little younger than mine, and I had never used those rod thingies, had no interest in them. So finally I decided I should really check them out, and bought MMM at a local teacher supply store. Dumped them out on the table and started with the first task card, which is "Dump all the rods on the table. Have dc separate them into piles according to color. Mess 'em up, and separate them into piles according to size. Hey--it's the same piles!" [Ellie paraphrase, lol.] It wasn't long before I was sucked in to c-rod world. :D

 

I didn't hear about Miquon until quite a few years later, after my dc were well past the age to do it.

 

C-rods and base 10 blocks are the only manipulatives that make sense to me.

 

I used MMM, followed by Miquon, in a little one-room school, with my younger dc, who all came to me with math issues. Miquon and c-rods were a wonderful help.

[lea1]

Here is the fun cross word / picture puzzles book I mentioned above:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=picture+puzzles+with+Cuisenaire+rods&x=11&y=12

 

This book would be a great one for a 3 to 5 year old who is just getting interested in rods:

http://www.amazon.com/Cuisenaire-Alphabet-Book-Grades-K-4/dp/0914040782/ref=pd_sim_b_8

 

The riddle book is out of print but the name of it is:

Hidden Rods/Hidden Numbers by Manon P. Charbonneau.

 

It is for grades 1-8 and it was published by The Cuisenaire Company of America, Inc. Here are a couple of sample problems from this book:

 

This is the first page in the book so it is the easiest problem.

"Four rods.

All Different.

Longest rod shorter than yellow."

 

From p.23:

"Three rods.

All rods are different.

No rod equals four whites.

No rod is longer than yellow.

Train equals orange."

 

From p.43:

"w=1

Longest X 5 < 10

Number of rods > 5

Shortest X shortest = shortest

2 times each rod, then add them = 24

Each rod has a twin"

 

There are 78 pages in this book, although it is a small book and each page only has one problem, such as the ones above. It covers addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and fractions. Clues are provided for the hardest problems. It is an awesome book if you can find it.

 

I already linked the other book in a prior post.

 

Hope that helps!

[rgrin]

Here is the fun cross word / picture puzzles book I mentioned above:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=picture+puzzles+with+Cuisenaire+rods&x=11&y=12

 

This book would be a great one for a 3 to 5 year old who is just getting interested in rods:

http://www.amazon.com/Cuisenaire-Alphabet-Book-Grades-K-4/dp/0914040782/ref=pd_sim_b_8

 

The riddle book is out of print but the name of it is:

Hidden Rods/Hidden Numbers by Manon P. Charbonneau.

 

It is for grades 1-8 and it was published by The Cuisenaire Company of America, Inc. Here are a couple of sample problems from this book:

 

This is the first page in the book so it is the easiest problem.

"Four rods.

All Different.

Longest rod shorter than yellow."

 

From p.23:

"Three rods.

All rods are different.

No rod equals four whites.

No rod is longer than yellow.

Train equals orange."

 

From p.43:

"w=1

Longest X 5 < 10

Number of rods > 5

Shortest X shortest = shortest

2 times each rod, then add them = 24

Each rod has a twin"

 

There are 78 pages in this book, although it is a small book and each page only has one problem, such as the ones above. It covers addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and fractions. Clues are provided for the hardest problems. It is an awesome book if you can find it.

 

I already linked the other book in a prior post.

 

Hope that helps!

 

Thanks for the links! Off to shop!

[Spy Car]

:lol:That is too funny Bill! Started my day off with a laugh.

 

I'm glad. You capped my evening with a smile.

 

I hope the Cuisenaire Rods prove to be very rewarding for you :001_smile:

 

Bill

Edited October 26, 2011 by Spy Car

[bbkaren]

Here's an incredibly helpful post from Veggiegal. I appreciated it so much, because I too had no idea how they worked!

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3253553&postcount=19

 

"...There are lots of more complex and detailed things you can do with these rods, but at the most basic level, the idea is to get children seeing the numbers as a 'whole', rather than counting separate objects. So a 1-rod is your shortest rod, and 1-unit (usually centimetre) long. The 2-rod is twice that length, the 3-rod 3 cms long, etc. So when you have a question like:

 

4 + 3 =

 

The child takes the 3-rod, the 4-rod (are yours different colours? this helps) and lays them end to end (like train cars), and then finds the rod that matches that length--i.e., the 7-rod. If the child selects the wrong rod first, they can see if their guess was too short or too long. This is very different than a child counting "1, 2, 3, 4" and "1, 2, 3" and then putting them together in a group and counting "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7". (More advanced students will use 'counting on'--after the 4, they will say "5, 6, 7" as they count blocks, fingers, whatever. But with rods, there simply is no way to 'count', period.

 

To do the problems of the OP, like:

 

2 + ? = 6

 

you child would take the 2-rod and 6-rod (what is 'known') and place them so that the 2-rod lies over or alongside the 6-rod, like this:

 

--

------

 

Now the child needs to find the rod that would make the top line the same length as the bottom line--i.e., the 4-rod. Again, depending how they guess they can see if their number is too large or too small, and revise their guess accordingly.

 

The rods also work spectacularly for learning what numbers group to 10, a useful skill in our base-10 system. MUS has the kids build a wall of tens, with a 10-rod on the bottom, 1+9 on top, then 2+8, 3+7, etc. For some kids the visual and concrete representation of those bars locks those facts in their brain in a much stronger way than kids who are 'counting up' to 10.

 

Make sense?..."

[LittleIzumi]

:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol: Thanks for that, Bill.

 

 

 

I actually broke out the C-rods for our first *structured* session ever, and it was with my oldest. We did some of the first multiplication sheets from Miquon, and being able to see X groups of Y without any counting really, REALLY seemed to help her understand the concept. Even when she hit her ADD focus limit, she kept coming back to it repeatedly and trying to pay attention because she wanted to do more of it.

[Spy Car]

:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol: Thanks for that, Bill.

 

 

 

I actually broke out the C-rods for our first *structured* session ever, and it was with my oldest. We did some of the first multiplication sheets from Miquon, and being able to see X groups of Y without any counting really, REALLY seemed to help her understand the concept. Even when she hit her ADD focus limit, she kept coming back to it repeatedly and trying to pay attention because she wanted to do more of it.

 

Outstanding!

 

Bill

[Kuovonne]

When I hear people rave about c rods, I usually hear how awesome they are for kids discovering simple addition, subtraction, and multiplication.

 

However, c rods are also great for division, fractions, and even multi-digit multiplication, especially if you add in base 10 blocks. You can use them to demonstrate the distributive property of multiplication. You can use them to show equivalent fractions and using a common denominator when adding fractions. They are a great precursor to bar diagrams for word problems and algebra tiles for later math. Pair the tiny white cubes with base 10 units and you can demonstrate addition and subtraction of negative numbers.

 

C rods are cheaper per rod than MUS blocks and take less storage space.

 

C rods also make a fun toy for buiding pictures, designs, buildings, and other structures.

 

C rods are on the same scale as Base 10 Blocks and DecimalMods. Pair the three sets of manipulatives together and you have blocks for numbers from one-tenth to one thousand. (AlgeBlocks also fit with them well as they are on the same scale, but AlgeBlocks are super expensive.)

 

How many other math manipulatives are useful from kindergarten to middle/high school?

[KristenR]

 

How many other math manipulatives are useful from kindergarten to middle/high school?

 

:iagree::iagree:

[buram]

I was already convinced after my thread last week about first grade math frustrations now I really can't wait for payday to get here!!! I had no idea you could do so much with them.

[Hwin]

I could have written the OP (and I was kind of thinking about it) - we got our first set of c-rods on Monday and it was amazing to see it click for my son. To be honest, it clicked for me as well, "it" being the degree to which my son learns visually. We didn't do any sort of lesson, just played with them, but since he could very quickly tell me that 13-6 = 7 using the c-rods, and since he does not have that fact committed to memory... I'd say they are a fabulous tool.

[Spy Car]

However, c rods are also great for division, fractions, and even multi-digit multiplication, especially if you add in base 10 blocks. You can use them to demonstrate the distributive property of multiplication. You can use them to show equivalent fractions and using a common denominator when adding fractions. They are a great precursor to bar diagrams for word problems and algebra tiles for later math. Pair the tiny white cubes with base 10 units and you can demonstrate addition and subtraction of negative numbers.

 

 

:iagree: :iagree: :iagree:

 

Just this week we have been using C Rods to introduce equivalent fractions (along with the Cuisenaire-brand fraction rings). We've also used them to great effect to demonstrate the Distributive Property of Multiplication and as an introduction to decimals.

 

For decimals I have reassigned the value of base-10 "flats" to be 1-Unit (One), which makes an Orange Rod 1-Tenth and the other C Rods "Hundredths."

 

Off to Google "DecimalMods."

 

Bill

[linguistmama]

I thought love was only true in fairy tales

Meant for someone else but not for me.

Math was out to get me

That's the way it seemed.

Disappointment haunted all my dreams.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

I couldn't leave them if I tried.

 

I thought math was more or less a given thing,

Seems the more I gave the less I got.

What's the use of Saxon?

All you get is pain

When I needed sunshine I got rain.

 

Then I saw C Rods, now I'm a believer

Not a trace of doubt in my mind.

I'm in love, I'm a believer!

And I know that two and three makes five.

 

That needs to be a sticky! Go Rock Star Bill!

 

We have c-rods, but I think this thread is finally convincing me to get some books about how to use them. :)

[eewaggie99]

I was just getting ready to post this same thread! My child understood simple addition (1+ and 2+) equations, but was getting frustrated with anything higher. Counting on wasn't helping, either.

 

We bought the c-rods and her comprehension has taken a great leap. The minimum set you should buy is 155. I got the smaller set at first and quickly hit its limits. Based on forum's numerous discussions of c-rods, I structure the lesson like so:

 

"Take the light green 3 and the yellow 5 and put them together. What rod is the same as the light green 3 and the yellow 5?"

 

Child pulls out the brown rod and places them on top of the 3 and 5 to compare length. We call this making a train.

 

"Very good. The light green 3 and the yellow 5 together are the same as the brown 8. 3 and 5 make 8 or 3 + 5 equals 8."

 

I always make sure to say the color and the number so the child maintains the association.

 

As an aside, my child likes to make lots of noise, so whenever she makes a train, she says, "Chooo chooo!" with great relish. This wouldn't work so well with my eldest, but my dd enjoys it.

 

Big thank you to SpyCar and all the others promoting this manipulative.

[dbaeimers]

Can someone post a picture? I tried Googling it and did not find it other than links back to this board. Are they the same as linking blocks?

[eewaggie99]

 

C-Rods Click on the link

[Spy Car]

I was just getting ready to post this same thread! My child understood simple addition (1+ and 2+) equations, but was getting frustrated with anything higher. Counting on wasn't helping, either.

 

We bought the c-rods and her comprehension has taken a great leap. The minimum set you should buy is 155. I got the smaller set at first and quickly hit its limits. Based on forum's numerous discussions of c-rods, I structure the lesson like so:

 

"Take the light green 3 and the yellow 5 and put them together. What rod is the same as the light green 3 and the yellow 5?"

 

Child pulls out the brown rod and places them on top of the 3 and 5 to compare length. We call this making a train.

 

"Very good. The light green 3 and the yellow 5 together are the same as the brown 8. 3 and 5 make 8 or 3 + 5 equals 8."

 

I always make sure to say the color and the number so the child maintains the association.

 

As an aside, my child likes to make lots of noise, so whenever she makes a train, she says, "Chooo chooo!" with great relish. This wouldn't work so well with my eldest, but my dd enjoys it.

 

Big thank you to SpyCar and all the others promoting this manipulative.

 

My pleasure :001_smile:

 

I used to say:

 

"Show me all the ways you can make 8."

 

Which lead to some pretty elaborate "trains," as he would go for combinations like 1+2+3+1+1 in addition to 4+4.

 

After a while I leaned to ask what "pairs" make a combination of 8? :tongue_smilie:

 

To give people an idea about how to use these rods take the idea of 2+[ ]=8.

 

This same basic idea can be taught in slightly different ways.

 

it can simply be finding a missing "part" (or missing addend) by making a "train" and finding the missing part is 6. Easy!

 

Then one can play with inequalities. 2<6, 6>2.

 

2 is "how much less" than 6?

6 is "how much greater" than 2?

 

Same idea, different form.

 

One can use C Rods longitudinally to represent bar-graphs, or horizontally to represent Singapore-style bar-diagrams (for solving word problems).

 

A child can use them to help understand the idea of whole-parts "number-bonds" and to solve equations that are "sums", have missing addends, or involve finding differences. Subtraction and addition become fully inter-related concepts. It's cool.

 

Bill

[veggiegal]

Bill, forgive me if this has been discussed--I haven't read through all the messages--but do you have a good reference/book/source on cuisinaire rod activities? I was asked in a PM the other day, but I don't have one. I've just been playing around with various math manipulatives for so long it's kind of second nature to me now. TIA!

 

BTW, I _loved_ the Monkees spoof. How about doing one to the Beatles tune "Help" next: :tongue_smilie:

 

When I was younger, so much younger than today,

I never understood my maths, I needed help most everyday.

But now those days are gone; I'm not student, I'm teacher,

Now I find, I'm losing my mind, explaining number bonds and more.

 

Help me if you can I'm feeling down....

(feel free to continue, revise, etc. :D)

[Twilight Woods]

here is a few pages of one of the books...try it before you buy it from learning resources.

 

 

 

http://www.learningresources.com/text/pdf/7538book.pdf

[Spy Car]

Bill, forgive me if this has been discussed--I haven't read through all the messages--but do you have a good reference/book/source on cuisinaire rod activities? I was asked in a PM the other day, but I don't have one. I've just been playing around with various math manipulatives for so long it's kind of second nature to me now. TIA!

 

I used the Miquon material. Between "Notes to Teachers," "Lab Annotations," and (especially) the "First Grade Diary" the idea of "how" to use the rods came second nature for me too. I thought a lot about how I could make the concepts I was seeing in all the early math resources I had (I used many) could be made "concrete."

 

I also looked at the Activities for AL Abacus book (the precursor program to RightStart) and transposed ideas to base-10 "flats" and C Rods. And many things were just inspired using my imagination.

 

One resource I did not discover was Caleb Gattegno. I saw some videos recently of him in action that I loved. Including having students hold two C Rods behind their backs and determine which was greater by feel. I kick myself for not coming up with that idea myself.

 

There are "straight-forward" C Rod guides like Mathematics Made Meaningful (that I have not used) and the Pre-Miquon Activity book by Miranda Hughes that can be downloaded (free) from the web.

 

At the end of the day a lot of the activities just involved making concrete in the present the things we would be seeing in the near future. And making it fun.

 

Bill

[Amber in AUS]

Thanks for sharing the links to the books :)

[LittleIzumi]

That needs to be a sticky! Go Rock Star Bill!

 

We have c-rods, but I think this thread is finally convincing me to get some books about how to use them. :)

 

You can come check out mine. :D (But you'd have to actually come. My car seems to be death spiraling.)