Bead Village — Lesson 7: The tens rod: 10 to 99

What your child does, card by card

The tens rod: 10 to 99. One rod counts up to 9. PlayType opens the lesson: “Nine is the most one rod can hold. So where is ten?”

5, 6, 7, 8, 9: the top bead is 5. Each bottom bead adds 1. The ones rod is outlined in yellow while the kids explain. The labels “5”, “6”, “7”, “8” and “9” light up as each idea comes. “Tap the beads. Count up to 9 yourself.” Any bead or finger may be tapped afterwards.

Ten ones make one ten: at 9, the ones rod is full. A yellow line goes round the ones rod and the tens rod as the kids name them. 9 appears on the beads, then the rod clears again. Here the hands lead: they show 9 and 10, and a moment later the beads copy each one. On the card, “Full at 9” and “10 ones = 1 ten” light up one by one. Then the card invites a touch: “Tap a bead on any rod. Hear its number.”

10, 20, 30 … 90: on the tens rod, each bead is ten. Yellow marks the tens rod while the kids talk about it. The abacus makes 10, then clears. Each label lights in turn: “10 to 40”, “50: the top bead” and “60 to 90”. After the show, the child can touch: “Just like 6, 7, 8, 9 on the ones rod.”

Two rods, one number: 20 and 3 make 23. The tens rod and the ones rod are outlined in yellow while the kids explain. “2 tens = 20”, “3 ones = 3” and “23” glow on the card in step with the beads. The card ends on a touch: “Look at the little numbers under the rods.”

Two hands: tens and ones: right hand: ones. Left hand: tens. Here the hands lead: they show 3, 23 and 50, and a moment later the beads copy each one. Above, “Right = ones”, “Left = tens” and “Left thumb = 50” take turns to glow. Its words: “Left hand: a finger is 10, the thumb is 50.”

Try it puts a green ring on each next bead; your child makes 9, 10, 20, 23 and 47, changing the beads from one number to the next.

A tiny practice with no ring: make 50, make 60, make 90, make 35, make 68, make 99 and clear the abacus, changing the beads straight from one number to the next.

Copy me: the hand in the lower window shows 23, 50, 32 and 60, one at a time, and your child makes the same number on the beads.

In your head: the beads flash 20, 23 and 50, one at a time, for 2 seconds each and hide; your child shows each number on the drawn fingers, then sees the beads again.

You're ready! Ten ones make one ten. You can make every number up to 99.

What this lesson trains

About five minutes and 19 answers. Altogether the child makes 32 bead moves (11 with the top bead, 21 with bottom beads). 1 of them is a clear. Numbers reach 99, so the tens rod and the ones rod work. Then 3 quick looks in your head.

Your child’s first moves: make 9, 10, 20, 23 and 47.

Fingers and hands

Below the abacus the drawn hands show zero and 3, 9, 10, 20, 23, 32, 35, 47, 50, 60, 68, 90 and 99 here, finger for bead: the left hand counts the tens, the right hand the ones.

On “Ten ones make one ten” the hands move first and the beads follow, so your child sees that a finger and a bead move together: open a finger and a bead goes to the bar, close it and the bead goes back.

The fingers lead in Copy me (23, 50, 32 and 60); the beads answer.

What PlayBuddy and PlayType say

PlayType: “Nine is the most one rod can hold. So where is ten?”

PlayBuddy: “Five and one is six. Five and two is seven.”

PlayBuddy: “Seven, eight, nine. Every bead is on the bar. This rod is full!”

PlayType: “One more? There is no room! So the nine beads go back, and one bead goes up on the next rod.”

PlayBuddy: “The next rod is the tens. One bead there is ten.”

PlayType: “Ten, twenty, thirty, forty. And the top bead is fifty!”

PlayType: “Sixty, seventy, eighty, ninety. Now the tens rod is full too!”

PlayBuddy: “Look under the rods. Two and three. That makes twenty-three!”

Stars

Three stars for up to 1 slip in 19 answers, two stars for up to 4.