Many of us can remember back to a time in America when all that teachers expected us to do with our hands in the classroom was to fold them. But now that the power and effectiveness of hands-on instruction has been proven in a wide range of subject areas--particularly math--those days are over. Whether using traditional activities, such as counting with beans or coins, or more sophisticated manipulatives (e.g., geo-boards, tangrams, and pattern blocks), hands-on learning helps students to more readily understand concepts and boosts their self-confidence.