Because mathematical concepts are very abstract, manipulatives such as counting bears, number tiles, number trains, number bracelets, base 10 blocks, dollar bills, coins, fraction strips and fraction bars make math more meaningful to young children. Manipulatives develop good number sense which is the ability to build and take apart numbers.

Teaching math concepts with manipulatives before jumping to the abstract allows children to visualize and understand the concept. This way of teaching is the concrete stage of the C-P-A method that is integrated throughout the Singapore math program so that concepts and word problems including those encountered in the more advanced topics of fractions, proportions, and algebraic problems, are taught first with manipulatives. The concrete and pictorial stages of learning are never skipped.