The lesson library

Addition Strip Board

The Addition Strip Board bridges concrete addition (golden beads, bead bars) and abstract memorization of addition facts. The child places colored and blue strips on a ruled board to find sums, systematically working through all combinations.

Bead Chain of 100

The bead chain of 100 consists of 100 beads in 10 bars of 10 (colored by short bead stair colors). The child counts the chain, practices skip counting by 10s, and folds it into a square to experience 10 x 10 = 100. This prepares for the square and cube chains and the decimal system.

Bead Chain of 1000

The bead chain of 1000 is a very long chain of 1000 beads arranged in 100 bars of 10. The child counts by 10s or 100s, folds it into a cube shape (10x10x10), and experiences the concrete volume of one thousand. This is the culmination of the bead material and prepares for the decimal system and cubing.

30 min ●●●

Mathematics 6–8 yrs

Division Board

The division board uses a grid, green unit beads, and skittles (representing the divisor) to show division as equal sharing. The child places skittles and distributes beads into cups or directly on the board to find the quotient and remainder. This concretely demonstrates division before moving to abstract algorithms.

25 min ●●●

Fraction Skittles

Using a set of wooden skittles painted with fraction lines (whole, halves, thirds, quarters, etc.), the child explores how a whole can be divided into equal parts. The skittles provide a concrete, three-dimensional representation of common fractions and their equivalences.

Golden Bead Introduction to Quantity

The Golden Bead material introduces the decimal system through concrete, proportional representations: a single bead is one unit, a bar of 10 beads is ten, a square of 100 beads is a hundred, and a cube of 1000 beads is a thousand. The child experiences the hierarchy of the decimal system sensorially.

25 min ●●○

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Hundred Board

The child fills a 10x10 grid (hundred board) with numeral tiles from 1 to 100 in sequence. This material gives a visual and tactile impression of the complete hundred square, revealing patterns (rows end in 0, columns are +10). It consolidates counting to 100 and prepares for square and cube concepts.

25 min ●●●

Multiplication Bead Board

The multiplication bead board consists of a wooden board with 100 holes in a 10x10 grid and colored bead bars. The child places bars to represent the multiplicand and multiplier, counting the total beads to find the product. This provides a concrete experience of multiplication as repeated addition before abstract memorization.

Mathematics 4–5 yrs

Number Rods

Number Rods are the child's first introduction to quantity as a fixed, continuous length. Unlike counting loose objects, each rod represents a number as one whole piece — the "four rod" is experienced as a single entity of four units, preventing the common error of counting as mere labeling.

20 min ●○○

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Mathematics 4–5 yrs

Sandpaper Numerals

Sandpaper Numerals teach the child to associate the written symbol (0-9) with its name through tactile tracing, following the same multi-sensory methodology as sandpaper letters. The child traces each numeral while saying its name, building muscular memory of correct formation.

10 min ●○○

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Mathematics 4–6 yrs

Short Bead Stair

The short bead stair consists of 9 bars of beads (1-9) in different colors. The child builds the stair, names quantities by color, and uses it as a foundation for addition, multiplication, and memorization facts. Each color is consistently used for that quantity throughout the bead materials.

15 min ●●○

Snake Game - Addition

The snake game uses the short bead stair and colored bead bars to practice addition facts in a "snake" pattern on a mat. The child replaces combinations that make ten with a golden 10-bar, creating a visual snake that teaches complements to ten and addition tables concretely before moving to abstract memorization.

25 min ●●●