• MAO-WM-01
• MAE-RWN-01
• MAE-RWN-02

[Text over a blue background with a blue circular shape near the top right corner and a red one at the bottom right corner: How to make a rekenrek. Below the text in smaller font is another line of text: This is one way you can make a rekenrek.
Small font text in the upper left-hand corner reads: NSW Department of Education. In the lower left-hand corner is the white waratah of the NSW Government logo.

[A title on a white background reads: You will need…
Bullet points below read:

• an adult

• glue

• and...

Below the points is an image of items with text. On the left is a paper plate of beads with 3 lines of text. The first reads: 10 red beads, the second reads:10 blue beads and the third (in smaller font) reads: (You can use any 2 colours you like). Next to the plate is blue sheet of paper. In the upper left side of the paper is 4 pegs with text: 4 pegs. In the bottom left, is 2 paddle pop sticks with text: 2 paddle pop sticks. In the upper right, is 4 wall plugs with text: 4 wall plugs. In the bottom right is 2kebab sticks with text: 2 kebab sticks.

On a blue sheet is 4 pegs, 2 paddle pop sticks, 4 wall plugs and 2 kebab sticks. On the left of sheet is a paper plate of beads. On the bottom of the sheet is faint text that reads: There MUST be an adult helping with this project.

The speaker waves. She holds up the paddle pop sticks. She puts them back. She holds up the pegs. She puts them back. She holds up the kebab sticks. She puts them back. She holds up the wall plugs. She puts them back. She holds up the plates of beads. She puts them back. She holds up a bottle of glue. She takes it away. She pulls down a glue gun. She puts it back. She holds up her thumbs.

She takes a wall plug and pull down a plate which has the glue gun on it. She places some glue into the plug. She takes a kebab stick and inserts it into the plug. She takes another plug and glues a kebab stick into it. She secures the plugs into the sticks by pressing on them. She places the sticks and pushes the glue gun slightly out of the way.

She takes the paddle pop sticks. She places some glue a quarter of the way up on a stick. She takes a peg and glues its side onto the stick, aligning its top with the stick’s top. She presses on the peg. She adds glue to the other half of the stick. She sticks a peg on that side. She picks up the stick and presses on the pegs to open and close them. She puts the stick down on the paper. She takes the other stick and places some glue on it, the same way as before. She places the new stick alongside the completed stick. She takes a peg and glues it on the new stick. She turns the sticks around. She aligns the 2 sticks. She adds some glue on the other side of the new stick and sticks the other peg on it. She flips the sticks on their side. She picks up each stick and presses on the pegs to open and close them. She moves the stick to the upper left corner of the paper.

She picks up the kebab sticks and moves the plate of beads towards the middle of the paper. She places 5 red beads onto a stick, then 5 blue ones. She puts the stick down near the top of the paper. She repeats the process with the other stick. She places the stick down next to the other. She moves the plate away. She puts her thumbs up.

She moves the beaded sticks down the paper, and she takes the glue gun. She adds some glue on another wall plug. She inserts a beaded stick into the plug. She presses on the plug. She puts the stick down. She takes the other plug and glues it to the other beaded stick. She holds both sticks up together, and presses on the plugs. She puts them down in the middle of the paper, keeping them and their beads aligned. She puts her thumbs up. She pushes the glue gun up. She pulls the sticks down slightly.

She takes the paddle pop sticks with the pegs to the middle of the paper. She opens the pegs and places the kebab stick’s plugs into them. She moves the rekenrek to the centre of the paper. She puts her thumbs up.

[Text over a blue background: Have fun making!

Text over a blue background: What’s (some of) the mathematics?]

Speaker

So, what's some of the mathematics?

[A title on a white background reads: What’s (some of) the mathematics?
Bullet points below read:

• When we involve children in making mathematical tools, we help them make meaning from them. By making a rekenrek, we can focus attention on the structure of the beads (2 fives in each row) and practice fine-motor skills and skills in counting.
• Rekenreks help children recognise the structure of numbers from 0 to 20. They help build relationships to fives and tens, work with number combinations, and build flexible strategies for addition and subtraction, with 1- and 2- digit numbers.]

When we involve children in making mathematical tools, we help them make meaning from them. By making a Rekenrek, we can focus attention on the structure of the beads, so two fives in each row, and practice fine-motor skills and skills in counting. Rekenreks help children recognise the structure of numbers from zero to twenty. They help build relationships to fives and tens, work with number combinations, and build flexible strategies for addition and subtraction, with one and two digit numbers.

[A title on a white background reads: Other ways to make a rekenrek…
Below the title are 2 images side by side, with blue textboxes below each image. The image on the left is of a rekenrek made with 2 pegs and kebab sticks with 2 different coloured straws. The textbox below reads:
2 kebab sticks
2 pegs
2 straws, cut into smaller pieces of equal size

The image on the right is of a rekenrek on a cardboard and 2 pieces of strings with 2 different coloured straws. The textbox below reads:
A piece of cardboard
2 lengths of string
2 straws, cut into smaller pieces of equal size]

And don't worry if you don't have the exact equipment that we use today. Here are some other ways that you can make a Rekenrek, sent to me by my friend Kate. So just using some cut-up straws, maybe some kebabs, some strings, some cardboard, you can still get your child involved in making some really cool mathematical equipment, or your students. So over to you mathematicians and have a lovely day.

[Over a grey background, the red waratah of the NSW Government logo appears amongst red, white and blue circles. Text: Copyright State of New South Wales (Department of Education), 2021.] 

[End of transcript]