Cuisenaire Rods

Teacher Tools and Videos

Cuisenaire-Rods

Introduction, background, and activities to try to familiarize yourself with cuisenaire rods.

Simon Gregg: How I Teach Using Cuisenaire Rods (3-5)

Big Ideas in Arithmetic (k-5)

How to use:

  • Learn more about the power of Cuisenaire Rods:  Video   Book   Simon Gregg   Buy Rods
  • Watch and ask: What do you notice? What do you wonder?
  • Eventually, students will notice that the color of the rod represents a quantity. They will notice that the orange rod represents 10, and we can see the groups of ten in each number. They will see the pattern of the ones repeating over and over and the groups of ten increasing. That will lead to the idea that the written digits represent place value: orange for the tens place, and the other colors for the ones place.

Introduction To Cuisenaire Rods

What do you notice(K-5)

Use with sticky notes or fill in the spots below. You can recreate this document on an anchor chart as well.

Copy the picture above for the staircases that you can copy for students

Make Your Own Meter Stick

 

Cuisenaire Environment/Picture Virtual Manipulative. Students can add the values, make equations, make fractions, etc. The page gives suggestions. (K-5)

IHaveWhoHasCuisenaireRods(K-5)

I have Who Has cuisenaire directions

 

Free Play Grab Bag(K-5) Lesson 1 out of 3 for an introduction

 

Counting the staircase, making yellows(K-5)

Making Colored Rods-Recording Sheet for the above lesson;  Lesson 2 out of 3 for an introduction

 

Cuisenaire Rod Fill-ins  Lesson 3 out of 3 for an introduction

Use this to notice patterns when adding and subtracting or even and odd.

Reaching for Rods (K-5)

 

cuisenaire-rod-blog-pp(K-5) This gives an introduction to Cuisenaire Rods and mentions several activities and literature connections.

 

Math and Literature June 17 2014 (K-2) A resource that gives lists of several math books and activities you can do with them using any kind of manipulative, including Cuisenaire Rods.

Addition and Subtraction

Cuisenaire Cards         Card games (K-2)      Print out 4 of these pages to make a deck of cards. If you plan on having more people involved in games, you can increase that number.

Snakey Rods(K-2)  Game

Chutes and Ladders(K-2) Game

Little Pig Centers(K-2) Help Little Pig Build a House

Cuisenaire Counting (k-1) Composing and decomposing numbers; fact families; related facts; three addends

PDL-Number-Building-Playmats-for-Cuisenaire-Rods(K-1) Composing and decomposing numbers. The second page gives great suggestions for ways to extend the activity.

Train for Two (1-3) Addition and subtraction

Counting the staircase, making yellows(K-5)

Making Colored Rods-Recording Sheet for the above lesson

Using the picture book, “Grapes of Math” by Greg Tang

Click the picture above for the lesson “What’s the Difference” (1-3)

Subtraction strategies

Which Line is Longer  Comparing; repeated addition; subtraction. Can be whole group and then in a center.

Challenge Match   Challenge Match Task Card (K-2) Composing and decomposing numbers to 10; unknown addends; addition and subtraction

cuisenaire capers (1-5) Adding up to 100; properties of operations; place value; writing expressions; multiplication; distributive property

Triangle Magic (1-5) Three addends that equal ten. The logic and reasoning needed makes is suitable for intermediate grades.

color match doubles addition(1-5)  Adding doubles. The logic and reasoning needed makes is suitable for intermediate grades.

sums to ten (K-2) Sums to 10.

Number of the Day Cuisenaire Rods(K-2)  Even/Odd, adding/subtracting, greater than/less than

odds and evens(1-2) Addition

Shorter or Longer  cuisenaire spinner(K-2)  Measurement, comparing problems (addition/subtraction), greater than, less than

Same Difference(K-2)  Noticing patterns with differences and addition and subtraction strategies.

One more, one less, two more, two less (K-Beginning 2)

Multiplication and Division

multiplication task card(3-5) Prime/composite or multiplication/division

Same Length Trains (k-3) Virtual

same length trains(2-3) Can use repeated addition or multiplication

Cuisenaire Squared Three Act Task (3-5)

Cuisenaire Squared Three Act Task   Cuisenaire Squared Three Act Task

Using the picture book, “Grapes of Math” by Greg Tang

Cuisenaire Rod Squares (3-5) Students will notice patterns with square numbers.

Squares and Rectangles (3-5) Patterns with area and perimeter.

Which Line is Longer(2-3) Commutative property, symmetry, patterns, multiplication, repeated addition

Cuisenaire Rod Equations(3-5) Order of Operations, solving equations with unknowns

cuisenaire capers(1-5) Adding up to 100; properties of operations; place value; writing expressions; multiplication; distributive property

Gridlock Recording Sheet     Gridlock Game (3-5) Multiplication and area

Cuisenaire Rod Equations(3-5) Order of operations, solving equations with unknowns

Fractions

Click on the picture above for the online activity (3-5)

 Show connection between fractions and multiplication

Click picture above to go to website and learn more about the lesson(3-5).

More less equal to a whole (3-5)

Rod Fractions (4-5)

CPALMS Fraction Measuring (3rd) Fractions, Equivalent Fractions, Measuring with CM

CuisenaireRodsNumberLines (3-5) Fractions on a Number Line 

Parts of a Whole Fraction Packet(3-5) Riddles

Adding and Subtracting with Unlike Denominators Fractions (4-5) Riddles

Naming rods (4-5)

Measurement

Make Your Own Meter Stick

Estimation Station(K-5) Measurement and Estimation. Older grades can convert using the metric system.

CPALMS Fraction Measuring (3rd) Fractions, Equivalent Fractions, Measuring with cm

COLOR An Amusing Adventure Game Board    An amusing adventure      An Amusing Adventure Game Board(2-5) Measurement, with estimating first. There are a lot of suggestions on how to extend this activity on page 7 of the last PDF.

Estimate and Measure (K-5) Estimate how many centimeters the line is and then measuring with Cuisenaire Rods.

Shorter or Longer   kindergarten ShorterorLongerMathStationFREEBIE  cuisenaire spinner (K-2) Measurement, comparing problems (addition/subtraction), greater than, less than

Squares and Rectangles(3-5) Patterns with area and perimeter.

Race to Get to 50 or 100(2-5) Skills: Addition, Subtraction, Skip Counting, Decimals, Metric System, Measurement.

Multiple Concepts

Cuisenaire Cards(K-5) Print out 4 of these pages to make a deck of cards. Versions of War, Go Fish, Memory, etc.

Cuisenaire Art(K-5) There are several extensions/variations that make this activity great for multiple skills and multiple grade levels. (Add, subtract, multiply, divide, properties of operations, order of operations, place value, line them up next to a meter stick to find value). Use this to notice patterns when adding and subtracting or even and odd.

Number Patterns Using Cuisenaire Rods (K-5)

Number Patterns with Cuisenaire Rods (K-5)

Race to Get to 50 or 100(2-5) Skills: Addition, Subtraction, Skip Counting, Decimals, Metric System, Measurement.

Tricky Path (1-5) Skills: One more, one less, number sequences, or number patterns. You can challenge your students by asking them to make it with the greatest or least amount of rods possible. Extend: Students can count the value of the rods and make equations.

Triangle Magic (1-5) How can you place the rods so that each side of the triangle adds up to an orange rod?

color match doubles addition(1-5)

Squeeze Play(K-5) Logic and reasoning game

Odd One Out examples (1-5) Examples–addition/subtraction, multiplication/division

Equations with cuisenaire rods(3-5) Order of Operations, solving equations with unknowns

Shorter or Longer    cuisenaire spinner(K-2) Measurement, comparing problems (addition/subtraction), greater than, less than

Cuisenaire Rod Equations(3-5)  Order of operations, solving equations with unknowns