Math Manipulatives 101

Do you find that your child struggles with Math or simply dislikes the subject? You’re not alone!

Many parents face the challenge of helping their children understand abstract mathematical concepts, which can negatively impact their grades. But fear not, there’s a solution that can make Math more interactive and enjoyable for your child – math manipulatives.

These tools allow students to use concrete objects to visualize mathematical concepts and develop a deeper understanding of them. In this article, we’ll explore what math manipulatives are and how you can use them to improve your child’s math skills.

So, if you’re a parent seeking to boost your child’s Math grades, keep reading to discover the benefits of Math manipulatives.

What are some examples of Math manipulatives?

Singapore Math uses the CPA (concrete, pictorial, abstract) approach to encourage active thinking, understanding, and communication of mathematical concepts and problem-solving.

Math manipulatives are objects that students can use to represent and visualize mathematical concepts. They can be anything from blocks to coins, to measuring cups, to pattern blocks, and many more. These manipulatives allow children to work with numbers in a tangible way, giving them a deeper understanding of abstract concepts.

Math manipulatives, such as base ten blocks, mathlink cubes, and geoboards, can be particularly beneficial for different concepts.

• Base ten blocks can be helpful for teaching place value and addition and subtraction with regrouping.
• Mathlink cubes can be useful for teaching measurement, counting, and geometry, while
• Geoboards can be used to teach area, perimeter, and geometry concepts.

In this article, we’ll delve deeper into what math manipulatives are and how to use them effectively to improve your child’s math skills.

Math manipulatives helps your child to visualise & make abstract mathematical concepts come to live!

Math is a very abstract topic. Using of manipulatives helps younger students to understand the concept of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division and not just by memorising them.

The picture shows how Math typically looks like. 1 + 1 = 2 . However younger students may have difficulty understanding it as the number 1 , 2 and the symbol + are too abstract to them. Imagine how tough it would be to learn Math in a different language? Would you be able to understand the equation below?

१ + १ = २ (This is a math equation in Hindi)
This is how the equation of 1 + 1 = 2 look like for the students as the symbols are all very foreign to them. hence, if you replace it with a concrete material like an apple or the base ten block and ask the student how many apples are there, they will be able to tell you 1 and 1 make 2.

Math Manipulative #1: Base Ten Blocks

The base ten blocks can be used to teach addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, number sense, place values, decimals and regrouping. When they touch and play with the base ten block, learning comes in naturally.

By using manipulatives to learn Math, it can help your child to gain a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts through interactive and engaging play-based activities.

Math Manipulative #2: Mathlink Cubes

Mathlink cubes are a versatile manipulative that can be used to teach a variety of math concepts, including counting, comparing numbers, making 10, measurements, grouping, addition and subtraction, patterns and shapes, sorting, and matching.

The picture demonstrates how teachers can use Mathlink cubes to teach patterns. Teachers can first teach students how to identify patterns based on colors. Once they understand the concept of patterns, you can challenge them to create more complicated patterns using the shape holes in each side of the blocks. This will not only cover the topic of patterns but also on shapes. The Mathlink cubes can also be used to construct different shapes like square, rectangle or triangle. You will be covering the topic on shapes too!

Math Manipulative #3: Geoboards

Geoboards allows students to experiment with creating of new shapes, rotating and exploring the shapes and also understand and explore the properties of the shapes. It can be used to teach area and perimeter of triangles, squares and rectangles and symmetry.

How we can support your child in their Math journey?

At Bluetree Education, we believe in the power of play-based learning and manipulatives to enhance our students’ math education. Our approach is designed to help students develop a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts by engaging with concrete objects and problem-solving activities. Additionally, these manipulatives help your child visualize and better understand abstract concepts.

Our experienced teachers use manipulatives such as base ten blocks, mathlink cubes, and geoboards to help students learn math in a fun and interactive way. The results have been amazing, with students developing stronger communication and reasoning skills and achieving better grades in math. Let us help your child excel in math by incorporating the use of manipulatives in their learning journey.

Contact us at 96160312 to find out more about our programs.

Read Also: Real-Life Applications of Primary Math Every Kid Should Know!