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Original poster

Cusinair Rods anyone?

36 replies

prettycandles · 01/09/2004 17:19

Does anyone know where I could get a set? Or even how to spell the word properly so that I can Google it?

Thanks

OP posts:
Tissy · 01/09/2004 17:23

voila!

It is an American site though. If you manage to get some in the UK, let me know, cos I'd like some. If you end up ordering from USA, I'll share postage with you!

Tissy · 01/09/2004 17:25

doh!

When I was a kid they used to come in an orange cloth bag....

Original poster
prettycandles · 01/09/2004 17:30

Excellent, thanks!

This is what I found. If I find any others I'll post them too.

OP posts:
Tissy · 01/09/2004 17:33

prettycandles that looks like the Mini set that the Cuisenaire site mentions, I'd check with them for an up to date price!

Original poster
prettycandles · 01/09/2004 17:37

This one's cheaper, but of course we can't tell if it's the same set.

OP posts:
Original poster
prettycandles · 01/09/2004 17:38

I tried the Cuisenaire site, but it took soooo long to load and was not very clear, so I looked elsewhere.

OP posts:
Tissy · 01/09/2004 17:39

they also seem to come in wood or plastic, which would make a difference to the price.

Original poster
prettycandles · 01/09/2004 17:40

Yes, I remember the bag too. If these come in a boring box, I shall have to make a bag for them - far more convenient than a box, and adds another dimension to their use as a toy.

OP posts:
Tissy · 01/09/2004 17:41

were your parents teachers, by any chance?

binkie · 01/09/2004 18:03

PC, the best source I think is Tarquin - I've ordered from them several times now, and very importantly their stock is wooden (the right nostalgic smell is essential). Though the packaging isn't as chic as the sets you can get from the official Cuisenaire site.

roisin · 01/09/2004 18:29

Wow! This has brought back some memories. I've just emailed my mum to see if they still have a set in the attic, as I'd love to play with them again ... with the boys of course

alibubbles · 01/09/2004 18:48

I have a couple of basic sets, unopened if you want one. I got them from the Us, they are in a white plastic tray, not too pretty, but I am sure you could make a cloth bag!

Original poster
prettycandles · 02/09/2004 14:52

Oh Alibubbles, that would be lovely! Are they the wooden ones, and how much would you want for them?

The wood and the bag really are nostalgic . I bet my parents still have ours somewhere up in the loft, but as all the old toys are boxed up together, I don't want to unwrap everything until ds and dd are old enough for at least most of them.

Tissy, my dad is an engineer by training and a lateral thinker by preference, and my mum a primary school teacher who used to make her own teaching aids because she worked in deprived areas.

OP posts:
roisin · 02/09/2004 14:59

My mum and dad no longer have their set

But my dad has just offered to make me some
He loves working with wood, and has made some fantastic things for the boys over the years, so this is great.

alibubbles · 02/09/2004 21:39

prettycandles. they come witha mini wall chart and a booklet called 'learning with Cuisenaire Rods" I got them from ETA.

Do you want one or two sets?

Email me, alisoncobb at bt openworld dotcom or through contact another talker

Tissy · 02/09/2004 21:52

alibubbles, if prettycandles only wants one set, could I have the other, please?

Hausfrau · 03/09/2004 20:20

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Dingle · 03/09/2004 20:40

Have been looking at these myself. DD has Down Syndrome and we have just invested in a "Numicon- at home set".(www.numicon.co.uk) Paid £30!!!
Didn't have any knowledge of these but have seen them in catalogues from www.formativefun.com- £12.99 for a74 rod set +£4.50 p&p.Same set available from www.brightminds.co.uk for £12.95 plus £3.95 p+p. Some great educational bits here for SN or otherwise!!!
Are these recommended then?

Dingle · 03/09/2004 20:51

And sorry, my mind isn't bright enough to manage a link- only tried once and flopped!

Tissy · 03/09/2004 20:58

Don't know about recommended, exactly...they are great for visualising fractions, particularly, but they are probably useful for loads of other things, too. I have fond memories of my parents getting out the rods for us to "play" with , when I was a kid. This was pre-school, and I understood fractions, decimals and division around the age of 4!

binkie · 03/09/2004 21:03

Think I'd recommend, but like Tissy (and lots of others below) can't tell how much is nostalgia and how much is conviction. Apparently there was a pilot project for the rods in Edinburgh schools in the early sixties, hah dates me, and they were always a rather intensely loving memory till I found them again for maths-adoring ds.

Just like Playplax, really ... anyone remember those?

roisin · 17/09/2004 21:23

My dad has made us a set of cuisenaire-type rods, but to personal specifications! There's a decimal set, for use when playing with decimals or percentages. But also a set of fractions - 1/4, 1/8, 1/3, etc. Both boys have already enjoyed playing with it.

DS2 has been doing some music theory recently, and suddenly started using the fractions set of rods to write clapping rhythms - a 'whole' rod equals a 4/4 bar: 1/2 is a minim, 1/4 is a crotchet, 1/8 is a quaver!

So thank you for reminding me about these.

Doddle · 17/09/2004 21:48

They have them in the new Baker Ross catalogue for £11.99

roisin · 17/09/2004 21:50

Plastic ones though Doddle - doesn't do it for me I'm afraid. Need the smell and feel of the wood to get the nostalgic feelings going.

(Good job really as I spend far too much with Baker Ross anyway.)

SoupDragon · 18/09/2004 08:56

Dare I ask, Roisin, did your dad just slice up some 1x1cm square wooden batons into appropriate lengths?

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