Elementary

Supporting Social and Life Skills Development in the Classroom and Beyond 

By Susan Rose Simms 

Children are constantly learning and navigating how to understand themselves and connect with others. These everyday interactions, whether in the classroom, on the playground, or at home, help shape the skills they will carry with them for life. 

What’s Red and White All Over? 

How the Rekenrek Supports Number Sense in Pre-K–Grade 5 

By Christine Hopkinson 

The rekenrek is a versatile math tool that is visual, tactile, and affordable. Its red-and-white bead structure makes number relationships easy to see and gives students a clear, visual way to think about quantity and place value. 

This post shares eight downloadable rekenrek mini-lessons for Pre-K through Grade 5 that teachers can use to support number sense in the classroom. Each lesson highlights a specific mathematical concept and shows how the structure of the rekenrek helps students see and reason about numbers. 

Didax Turns 50! Here’s What’s Coming in 2026 

This year is a big one: Didax is celebrating 50 years of active math learning, and we’re marking the milestone with new product launches, monthly giveaways, and in-person events all year long. 

Whether you’re a classroom teacher, homeschool educator, math coach, administrator, or parent, we’re grateful you’ve been part of the journey. Your support has allowed us to continue delivering the hands-on classroom staples you rely on while also creating new, innovative resources for math learning. We can’t wait to celebrate with you and show you what’s next. 

Exploring Montessori Materials: Building the Foundation for Lifelong Learning 

The name “Montessori” is familiar to many, often associated with early childhood education. Numerous homeschool programs and classroom teachers draw inspiration from the Montessori philosophy, particularly during a child’s formative years from preschool through early elementary. What many people don’t realize, however, is that Montessori principles apply from birth to young adulthood. 

So, what is the Montessori philosophy, and why do so many educators embrace it? At its core, Montessori emphasizes child-centered learning, allowing children to explore and progress at their own pace within a carefully prepared environment. This approach nurtures independence, curiosity, and hands-on experiences, supporting the development of the whole child academically, socially, and emotionally. 

Making Math Stick: How Manipulatives Boost Learning Across Grade Levels 

Children make sense of the world through sight, sound, touch, and movement. Decades of cognitive and neuroscience research show that sensory experiences form the foundation for abstract thought, including mathematical reasoning. When children explore, sort, build, and compare, they develop the brain pathways that later support number sense and problem solving (Butterworth, 2019; Sarama & Clements, 2021). This idea, often called embodied cognition, highlights how physical experience shapes mental understanding. In mathematics, hands-on learning is essential.  

Make Math a Family Affair: Your Guide to Hosting Family Math Night 

Turn math learning into a fun, interactive event for families! This step-by-step guide helps schools plan a successful Family Math Night, with practical tips, station ideas, and strategies to engage students and families in hands-on math learning.  

Bring math learning home and encourage family engagement. Family Math Night is an interactive event that brings students and families together to explore math in fun, approachable, hands-on ways. It helps families see the joy in math, understand how math is taught today, and fosters a strong home-school connection. Didax is pleased to offer many products to support in this Back-to-School endeavor.   

Little Minds, Big Numbers: The Importance of Math in Preschool Classrooms 

Hands-on math in preschool is about more than numbers—it’s about building curiosity, problem-solving, and essential thinking skills. From sorting and measuring to patterns and counting, playful activities lay the foundation for lifelong math success. These activities don't just teach math—they teach kids how to think. 

Let’s count, sort, measure, and build our way into bright mathematical futures—one playful moment at a time! 

A primer on counting skills in the early years 

Mathematical Foundation

By Christine Hopkinson  

Pre-K – grade 1 educators know all too well the importance of math in the early years and research confirms, “Children’s early mathematical knowledge serves as a predictor of later mathematics success and their college and career opportunities.” (Shah et al. 2018; Watts et al. 2014).  

By: Christine Hopkinson, Senior Product Manager  

At Didax, we’re passionate about creating engaging, high-quality materials that make math fun and accessible for students. Our newest addition, the 0-20 Shape Playing Cards, is a perfect example. These versatile cards aren’t just for one grade level or topic—they’re designed to seamlessly support a wide range of math concepts. From counting to operations, these cards offer endless opportunities for hands-on learning and fun. Since traditional cards don’t have the numbers 0-20, they often do not fully address fluency skills students need to practice with. That’s where this innovative set of cards comes in as they provide the range of numbers needed in K-5 and beyond!