When working on the activities in this feature, you'll need to be able to visualise what's going on. To help you, we have provided some interactive Cuisenaire Rods that you can use to compare lengths, try out different combinations of rods, and make sense of questions about fractions and ratios.
problem
Rod fractions
Age
7 to 14
Challenge level
Pick two rods of different colours. Given an unlimited supply of rods of each of the two colours, how can we work out what fraction the shorter rod is of the longer one?
problem
Colour building
Age
11 to 14
Challenge level
Using only the red and white rods, how many different ways are there to make up the other rods?
problem
Favourite
Searching for mean(ing)
Age
11 to 16
Challenge level
If you have a large supply of 3kg and 8kg weights, how many of each would you need for the average (mean) of the weights to be 6kg?
problem
Combining lengths
Age
11 to 16
Challenge level
How many different lengths is it possible to measure with a set of three rods?
problem
Different by one
Age
14 to 16
Challenge level
Can you make lines of Cuisenaire rods that differ by 1?
list
Playing with Cuisenaire
The activities in this feature all make use of Cuisenaire rods. We hope you enjoy being playful with the rods as they help you uncover and connect some important mathematical ideas.
list
Seeing mathematically
Age
11 to 14
Challenge level
Creating mental images is a powerful way to solve maths problems.