During our Number Talks, we started using a new tool called a Rekenrek.
My students really enjoyed building, creating, and exploring different
combinations of numbers with this tool. See below more about our math tool.
What is a Rekenrek?
There is perhaps no more important task for primary teachers than to help young children develop powerful understandings of numbers -- their meanings, their relationships to one another, and how we operate with them.
The Rekenrek has recently emerged on the U.S. mathematics education scene as perhaps the most powerful of all manipulative models for young learners. Developed by mathematics education researchers in the Netherlands (although similar models were used in ancient cultures) the Rekenrek combines various strengths of other manipulatives (e.g., number lines, base-10 blocks, counters, etc.) in one accessible tool.
The Rekenrek is comprised of two strings of ten beads each, strategically broken into two groups: five red beads, and five white beads. Readily apparent in this model is an implicit invitation for children to think in groups of five and ten. As illustrated below, the strings of red and white beads (in groups of 5) provide a visual model that encourages young learners to subitize, i.e., to build numbers based on groups of five and ten.
