Golden Beads

Description

The Golden Beads are the material most essential for teaching the decimal system to children in Montessori schools. It consists of unit beads which are just individual beads, ten bars which are short lengths of wire strung with ten beads, hundred squares which are made of 10 ten bars wired together to make a square, and thousand cubes which are made by wiring together 10 hundred squares.

Hundred squares and thousand cubes take a long time to make and can be rather expensive, so when doing activities that use a lot of hundreds and thousands, wooden representations of hundreds and thousands are used in the place of the beaded kind.

Make Your Own

Unit Bead

The least expensive unit beads available from the vendors below are a little less than a penny a piece.
The beads should be between 6 and 7.5 millimeters in diameter. They should be as spherical as possible so that they are equally wide as long.

6mm Round Gold Plastic Beads

• Bedazzlinbeads $6.99/950 (0.736¢)
• Craft Kits and Supplies $4.49-$4.99/750 (0.598¢-0.665¢)
• McGills Warehouse $2.49/1180 (0.211¢) (light gold)
• McGills Warehouse $2.49/1180 (0.211¢) (dark gold)
• McGills Warehouse $2.49/1180 (0.211¢) (yellow gold)

6mm Round Yellow Faceted

• Craft Kits and Supplies $3.59-$3.99/1000 (0.359¢-0.399¢)

Ten Bar

These can be purchased for as low as $0.20 a piece (bought in groups of 45). If you can make them for less than this it could be worthwhile.

Beaded Hundred Square

These can be purchased for as low as $1.67 each (bought in groups of 9).

Beaded Thousand Cube

The lowest price for these is $15.99 each.

Wooden Hundred Square

These can be purchased for as low as $0.44 a piece (bought in groups of 45). If you can make them for less than this it could be worthwhile.

Hundred squares and thousand cubes are 7.5cm across. Hundred squares are 7.5mm thick. (2.95 inches by 0.295 inches)

• Wooden hundred squares (and thousand cubes) could be made using a stencil made with a small hole punch and gold spray paint.
  
• Hundred squares can also be made using a stamp made from pencil erasers.
  

  

  Source:Walk Beside Me

Wooden Thousand Cube

These can be purchased for as low as $2.11 a piece (bought in groups of 9). If you can make them for less than this it could be worthwhile.

Where to Buy

Prices and links last checked: 5 July 2020

Golden Unit Beads
- 9 -
Adena $0.19
Bruins $2.00
- 45 -
Adena $1.62
Alison's $3.80
Bruins $4.00
- 100 -
Affordable Montessori $5.00
E & O $6.00
E & O $11.00 (with box)
Kid Advance $3.99
Leader Joy $8.95
Montessori Concepts $4.50
Montessori N' Such $3.00
Montessori Outlet $2.95
Nienhuis $12.50
Nienhuis $18.50
Pink Montessori $3.79

Unit Bead Cups
Affordable Montessori $4.00
Alison's $8.00 for 2
Bruins $2.00 for 1
Montessori Outlet $1.95

Golden Bead Ten Bars
- 9 -
Adena $2.95
Alison's $7.60
Bruins $12.00
Kid Advance $3.99
Leader Joy $10.95
Montessori Concepts $3.00
Nienhuis $5.00
Nienhuis $6.00
- 45 -
Adena $12.95
Affordable Montessori $22.00
Alison's $48.00
Bruins $50.00
E & O $42.00 (with box)
Kid Advance $16.00
Kid Advance $21.00(with box)
Leader Joy $21.95 (with box)
Montessori Concepts $16.00
Montessori Concepts $21.00 (with box)
Montessori N' Such $18.75
Montessori Outlet $18.95 (with box)
Nienhuis $61.50 (with box)
Nienhuis $69.50 (with box)
Pink Montessori $13.99
Pink Montessori $18.90 (with box)

Golden Bead Hundred Squares
- 1 -
Affordable Montessori $3.75
Bruins $10.00
E & O $10.00
Kid Advance $3.99
Montessori Outlet $3.95
Nienhuis $23.50
Nienhuis $28.50
- 9 -
Adena $23.95
Alison's $34.20
Bruins $99.00
Kid Advance $27.99
Leader Joy $33.95
Montessori Concepts $34.00
Pink Montessori $23.89
- 10 -
Montessori N' Such $24.00
- 45 -
Adena $131.95
Montessori Concepts $85.00

Golden Bead Thousand Cube
- 1 -
Adena $26.95
Affordable Montessori $31.00
Alison's $34.20
Bruins $90.00
E & O $45.00
Kid Advance $30.99
Leader Joy $36.95
Montessori Concepts $37.00
Montessori N' Such $36.00
Montessori Outlet $37.95
Nienhuis $115.50
Nienhuis $134.50
Pink Montessori $25.90

Wooden Hundred Squares
- 1 -
Affordable Montessori $1.50
Materials Co. of Boston $1.25
- 10 -
Kid Advance $9.99
Leader Joy $16.95
Montessori Concepts $12.00
Montessori Outlet $12.95
Nienhuis $23.50
- 45 -
Adena $30.95
Alison's $30.00
Alison's $55.00
Bruins $100.00
E & O $54.00
Kid Advance $32.99
Leader Joy $55.95
Montessori Concepts $56.00
Montessori Outlet $59.95
Pink Montessori $28.90

Wooden Thousand Cubes
- 1 -
Affordable Montessori $3.75
Materials Co. of Boston $4.75
Montessori N' Such $4.50
- 9 -
Adena $30.95
Alison's $30.00
Alison's $55.00
Bruins $55.00
E & O $52.00
Kid Advance $32.99
Leader Joy $49.95
Montessori Concepts $50.00
Montessori Outlet $53.90
Pink Montessori $28.90 - 10 -
Kid Advance $34.99
Montessori N' Such $35.00
Montessori Outlet $59.95
Nienhuis $60.90

Sets
Affordable Montessori $289.00 (with number cards)
Affordable Montessori $339.00 (with number cards)
Alison's $260.00 (45 layout with large number cards)
Alison's $359.10
Alison's $397.80
Bruins $555.00
Bruins $250.00
E & O $495.00
Kid Advance $239.99
Kid Advance $204.99
Leader Joy $299.95
Montessori Outlet $359.95
Nienhuis $678.80
Nienhuis $727.70
Pink Montessori $89.99
Pink Montessori $139.00

Fetching Trays
Affordable Montessori $55.00 (8 trays)
Nienhuis 39.10 (1 tray)

Also see:

• Introduction to Decimal Quantity

Base 10 Blocks

An alternative to the golden beads are the base ten blocks that are used in many public elementary schools. These are made out of plastic and are a bit larger than the golden beads. If you can find a good deal on a used set, they would be fine to use instead.

Source: Little Schoolhouse in the Suburbs

Where to Buy

ETA Cuisenaire $137.95 (400 units, 200 tens, 40 hundreds, 4 thousands)
ETA Cuisenaire $249.95 (1,000 units, 500 tens, 100 hundreds, 10 thousands)
ETA Cuisenaire $109.95 (600 units, 300 tens, 30 hundreds
Learning Resources $129.99 (600 units, 200 tens, 20 hundreds, 3 thousands)
Learning Resources $99.99 (600 units, 200 tens, 20 hundreds, 3 thousands)
Learning Resources $62.99 (100 units, 50 tens, 10 hundreds, 1 thousand)
Learning Resources $3.50 (100 units)
Learning Resources $5.99 (1 thousand)