MV T3.10Threading Large Beads on a Dowel
The child slides large wooden beads onto a stiff upright dowel and takes them off again.
Safety
- Each bead must not fit the small parts test cylinder (1.25 in. wide × 2.25 in. deep); beads at least 3.5 cm (1.4 in.) in their smallest direction do not fit.
- The fixed dowel is glued or screwed into the base and rounded at the top; a loose dowel is used only while seated, with an adult nearby.
Presentation
- 1
Carry the tray to the table and sit beside the child, with the dowel in front of them and the beads in the bowl.
- 2
Pick up one bead with your thumb and fingers and turn it so the child can see the hole.
- 3
Hold the bead above the dowel and line up the hole with the rounded top.
- 4
Lower the bead until the dowel passes through, then let it slide down to the base. The dowel coming out through the top of the bead is the point of interest.
- 5
Thread a second bead the same way, then invite the child to thread the rest.
- 6
When all the beads are on, lift them off one at a time and put them back in the bowl.
- 7
Return the tray to the shelf.
Extensions, easiest to hardest
- More beads on a taller dowel
- Beads with narrower holes on a thinner dowel
- A loose dowel about 20 cm long with rounded ends and a stopper at one end, held in one hand while the other hand threads
Control of error
A bead that is not lined up with the dowel does not go on; the base stops the beads at the bottom.
Ready to move on when the child…
- Lines up the hole with the dowel on the first or second try
- Threads all the beads and takes them off without help
- Holds a loose dowel steady in one hand while threading with the other