
The Golden Beads

With the Golden Beads, the child is given an introduction to our decimal system with the single unit bead, the ten-bar (ten beads strung on a wire), the hundred square, and the thousand cube.
Next, the child learns “counting through”: “This is one unit, two units, three units”… until we get to nine units. “And if we had one more, we would have ten.” Then we show how to exchange the ten separate beads into one ten-bar.

Children love the lesson that follows: the Bird’s Eye View! The child places all the numeral cards (1-9; 10-90; 100-900; 1000-9000)in vertical columns (units at the right, as when we write the numerals) and then sets out the quantities for each in Golden Beads. It may take most of the morning, but what an accomplishment for the four- or five-year-olds doing this!

Many happy hours can then be spent with the Bank Game. This is a group exercise. The teacher asks for a child to go get a particular number, such as 4,372, and the child goes to the Golden Bead “Bank”, assembles that quantity on a tray, and returns to the teacher.
In reverse, the teacher shows a quantity, and the child must give the name. A more advanced lesson combines the beads with the numeral cards for the exact same exercise.

The Golden Bead activities continue into the elementary grades. All basic operations are presented initially with the GoldenBeads before the child moves into the symbolic manipulation of the quantities (with number tiles or color-coded pegs).
Oh, yes, did I mention that the numeral cards are color-coded throughout? Units are always green, tens are always blue, hundreds are always red; then we repeat with thousands always green, etc.

A Montessori elementary class will also have color-coded beads that are a bit smaller for going the “other” direction—representing tenths, hundredths, thousandths, for operations with decimal fractions. With such a firm basis in the entire decimal hierarchy from their preschool and primary elementary grades, upper elementary students breeze through operations with decimal fractions.
The Golden Bead repertoire of teachings is a golden treasure to your child’s life-long mathematical understandings.
No School Reminder
Remember there is no school on Friday, Feb. 16th (a “professional development” day for the staff), or Monday, Feb. 19th (Presidents’ Day Holiday).