sillyandgoofy2 Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 I have bought a base ten number concepts set and fractions set and that's it. I've seen c. rods being recommended. Is there anything else? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Radish4ever Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 We are just using common items... markers, crayons, marbles, etc. I've also seen folks use decks of cards, a pair of dice, an abacus, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhotoGal Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 I use centimeter/gram cubes all the time. I can't remember where I got them now. They come in a big set and there are various colors. I use them to show adding, multiplying, patterns, etc. Each cube weighs one gram, so we used them when studying weight as well. You could also use them for length because each side is 1 cm long. They will be perfect when we get to volume as well because it will make "cubic centimeter" more meaningful. I didn't really expect to use them so much, but they have been handy. Otherwise I would recommend a little clock that you can move the hands on, a ruler, a deck of cards, a pair of dice. An abacus is nice to have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyBC Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 A Judy clock can be very handy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 A set of plastic money- pennies, nickels, dimes, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 We have actually used at some point: base 10 blocks C-rods coins (real ones) I have everything from the RS A kit, but I never use any of it. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 In addition to those mentioned above, we also get a lot of use out of the Place Value cards from Right Start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloggermom Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 Make sure to get the Melissa & Doug Classic Wooden Abacus, we use ours all the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen in CO Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 a pair of dice, a deck of cards, the RS abacus is terrific, a judy clock is handy for teaching time telling. other than those which good for teaching are my girls have enjoyed playing with a balance, our kitchen scales, and the c-rods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellers Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 My kids used these, and they absolutely loved working with fake money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 In addition to those mentioned above, we also get a lot of use out of the Place Value cards from Right Start. :iagree: Both the "place value cards" and the "base-10 cards" from RightStart can be useful ways of modeling 4 digit numbers pictorially. They are a nice addition to the use of Cuisenaire Rods and base-10 "flats" as one works through the concete>pictorial>abstract progression of learning/teaching place value. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyBC Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 Make sure to get the Melissa & Doug Classic Wooden Abacus, we use ours all the time. a pair of dice, a deck of cards, the RS abacus is terrific, a judy clock is handy for teaching time telling. other than those which good for teaching are my girls have enjoyed playing with a balance, our kitchen scales, and the c-rods. I prefer the RS abacus as it emphasizes that 5+5=10, but my dd preferred our old wooden abacus, probably because it's bigger and stands up, making it easier to work with. In hindsight, maybe I should have purchased the bigger RS abacus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 For younger children it can also be helpful to make homemade cards (index cards work well) that represent the values 1-10 in different ways. A few options: 1) Two rows of 5 red-dots (for 10). 2) A single row of 5 yellow dots and 5 blue dots (for 10) RS-style. 3) Showing the values as "tally style." All these help a child see values in relaton to 5s and 10s (how much more or less than). Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristinannie Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 In addition to those mentioned above, we also get a lot of use out of the Place Value cards from Right Start. These are excellent! We also love the RS math games (the clock games included in there are excellent or can be purchased separately). Our favorite manipulatives: C-rods, base ten blocks, 100's board, geoboards, tangrams Other manipulatives that I didn't find as useful: Interlocking cubes (they are necessary for Hands On Thinking Skills which is excellent for pre-K), attribute blocks (also necessary for Hands on Thinking Skills, but we skip those pages in the book because they are essentially useless) Our favorite math game: Sum Swamp (I cannot recommend this enough) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Element Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 (edited) I agree with pps about linking cubes, base 10 blocks, and c-rods. I also have a zippered pouch of Harcourt manipulatives that I use all the time. I didn't see any on ebay right now, but there are similar manipulative bags. ETA: Here is the manipulative pouch I use. Edited February 12, 2012 by Element Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandylubug Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 we use regularly a real clock (with batteries out that I can manipulate the arms) base 10 blocks dice beans money toys ( we use for "some went hiding" games) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dustybug Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 I use household items a lot like beans, coins, marshmallows, pencils, deck or cards, etc. I just purchased some pattern blocks, a bucket scale, transparent counters like previously posted, c-rods, and a clock from amazon last week. I think I'll soon be ordering some base ten blocks, place value cards, and maybe an abacus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 For younger children it can also be helpful to make homemade cards (index cards work well) that represent the values 1-10 in different ways. A few options: 1) Two rows of 5 red-dots (for 10). 2) A single row of 5 yellow dots and 5 blue dots (for 10) RS-style. 3) Showing the values as "tally style." All these help a child see values in relaton to 5s and 10s (how much more or less than). Bill I also did this and added a dot of glue on top of each dot to make it a tactile manipulative as well as visual (an idea I stole from O-G reading programs to help with kinesthetic learners). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatmansWife Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 (edited) Most of the manipulatives we use have already been suggested. I definitely think base 10 blocks are essential. Here are a few specific items we really enjoy: Bucket Balance (my dd loves this and it's a nice quality one) Number Balance (this is very useful) 100 Number Board (we have this specific one from Learning Resources and it's wonderful. The recessed grid is great. It comes with the colored transparent tiles (not cubes) to show number patterns. Dd uses round transparent counters in the grids also. She also uses it all the time to put her coins in....as an example, when she fills the grid with 100 pennies, she know she has $1.00. :001_smile: ). Edited February 12, 2012 by ~AprilMay~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sillyandgoofy2 Posted February 12, 2012 Author Share Posted February 12, 2012 Wow so many things I've never heard of before. Thank you so much for your suggestions and taking the time to answer. I never would have thought of such things like a scale or balance before but it makes perfect sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatmansWife Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 I've always been tempted to get this....because it's so cute. Buuuuutttt....I already have that number balance that I linked before. Ours basically does the same thing (just not as cute), so I can never justify getting the monkey balance. But, I know my dd would love it. Now I'm tempted to get this....since she is just beginning to learn multiplication. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T'smom Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 The only thing I can think of that no one has mentioned yet is pattern or attribute blocks. They're different shapes/colors- I have a set that has small/large circles, small/large squares, rectangles, two types of triangles, 1/2 and 1/4 circles and maybe a couple others I can't think of. I think mine came from Discovery Toys. It has cards that have pictures that you can make using the shapes, but the shapes themselves can be used for a million different things. My 4 year old loves them and has played with them at least since he was 2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristinannie Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 There are two great math manipulatives from Discovery Toys: Playful Patterns and Measure Up Balance. I used to sell DT, but am inactive now. I can help you place an order if you are interested though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 I also like our "Flap-board," which was an idea I took from the Miquon First Grade Diary book. The Flap-board was made of cardboard. The back piece was big enough to comfortably fit two index cards (oriented horizontally) side by side. My "innovation" was to use two "photo corners" (for each card) that secure the cards but allow for quick changes. Then you add two "doors" on top of the back piece, each door covering one half of the back piece (and therefore covering one card)). The "hinge" was simply fabric tape. So now you have Flap-board with two cards on the front of the back piece that are covered by two hinged "doors." You can open one door [say it is 3] Child says "Three." Open the other door [say it is 2]. Child says "two." What's the sum? Five! Very good. Three plus two equals five. Now you can close one of the doors [say the one with 3]. Five minus (or take-away, et al) is what? You get the picture. It is a fun way to work on all the interrelated "math facts" and "number bond" sense. Kids like the silly "peek-a-boo" aspect especially if you ham it up. Representing the values in various ways (see earlier post on homemade cards) is fun and useful, and of course straight numerals are good too. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blessedmom3 Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 not sure if anyone mentioned the fraction circles , but we absolutely worked a lot with them , from recognizing fractions in K-1 to adding or understanding equivalent fractions in grade 3.We have 3 sets. http://www.amazon.com/Deluxe-Fraction-Circles-School-Supply/dp/1564515710/ref=pd_sbs_op_6 Another option is this pizza fraction game, the kids love it and you have enough pieces to work with equivalent fractions http://www.amazon.com/Learning-Resources-Pizza-Fraction-Game/dp/B00009XNTF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shinyhappypeople Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 Not used directly as manipulatives, but I like pentominoes, tangrams and... LEGOS. Also small wooden building blocks. Anything that teaches kids to think and problem solve. You know what I wish? I wish I'd gotten dozens of fabulous manipulatives and just set them out and let older DD *play* with them for K/1. I think she would have (indirectly) learned a ton and perhaps wouldn't have the math-aversion she has today. Now I just need to have another baby, so I can teach him/her math this way :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 Dominos (which come in different types) and dice (which also come in different types, including 10 sided dice) can be a fun alternative to number cards for playing games like Addition War or Suntraction War. More "practice" in the guise of a game. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
besroma Posted April 30, 2012 Share Posted April 30, 2012 :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALB Posted April 30, 2012 Share Posted April 30, 2012 We love our pattern blocks, judy clocks, c rods and linking cubes. And (in a slightly different category) a toy cash register with play money! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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