Sunday, May 31, 2009

quicko: cuisenaire rods

So I can't quite remember why these are important, or precisely what they are, but I have a picture of them sketched in the "quickos" section of my notebook, along with "Quiusmaire rods (I think)" written above them by a very credible Australian co-worker. The picture looks vaguely like Lincoln logs or blocks or Legos or something; I can only imagine they are an Australian equivalent and hence a very integral part of your Australian cultural education, as provided by this blog. Consider yourselves informed.

5 comments:

James said...

My wife, an elementary teacher, informed me that Cuisenaire rods are, in fact, available in America too. They're not a toy like Lincoln Logs; rather, they are a math teaching aid.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuisenaire_rods

Anonymous said...

Quisinairre Rods (not sure the exact spelling, but the middle sound is 'n', not 'm')are tools to help children learn math. They are rods cut into varying lengths so that when, for example, all four of the blue rods are in a row, they equal one red rod, which is also equal to three yellow rods, end to end, etc. I believe your Aunt Amy and Uncle Craig may actually have used them when they were in school.

Unknown said...

What?

I have never heard of them, but if they're some kind of artwork, that's not necessarily surprising. I even googled them to figure out what you were on about. The only hit I got was your blog. Where are they? And can you suggest a slightly less obscure description? Or spell them differently? Or post a pic? I'm curious now.

KIM said...

Thanks, James, and anonymous relative :) I'll amend the spelling! Garry, this should help!

Unknown said...

Aaaah. Yeah, I remember those things. We just called them blocks (we were five years old, cuisenaire was probably pushing it).