After doing some reading on the topic of Virtual Manipulatives I realized that what I thought were virtual manipulatives were really not. I made the assumption that virtual manipulative were any form of math manipulative that was used on-line or on a computer program. For example Base 10 Blocks, Fraction Bars, or Pattern Blocks.
According to Patricia S. Moyer, Johnna J Bolyard, and Mark A Spikell the definition of a virtual manipulative is a little more specific. "A virtual manipulative is best defined as an interactive, Web-based visual representation of a dynamic object that presents opportunities for constructing mathematical knowledge" (Moyer, Bolyard and Spikell, 2002 pg, 373).
There are many sites that use manipulatives that represent the concrete manipulatives that are used in the math classroom like the fraction bars, geoboards, or patten block, However; what makes a manipulative truly virtual according to Moyer et al, is that they "allow the used to engage and control the physical action of theses objects..."
When I searched Wikipedia I found this definition of Virtual Manipulatives:
"Virtual manipulatives are a relatively new technology and are modelled after existing manipulatives such as base ten blocks, coins, blocks, tangrams, spinners, rulers, fraction bars, algebra tiles, geoboards, geometric plane, and solids figures. They are usually in the form of Java or Flash applets. Virtual manipulatives allow teachers to allow for efficient use of multiple representations and to provide concrete models of abstract mathematical concepts for learners of mathematics." (retrieved Nov 13/11 at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_manipulatives_for_mathematics )
Angela
References:
Moyer, Patricia S., Bolyard, Johnna J., and Spikell, Mark A. What are Virtual Manipulatives? Teaching Children Mathematics Feb 2002, pg 372- 377)
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