Learner Circle has designed a platform to facilitate Abacus education for students. The use of Abacus to learn fundamentals of Math can foster brain development and hasten their understanding of mathematical concepts. Experienced teachers design our online courses to help in the areas of early age development and cognitive thinking. There is a strong belief that critical thinking skills are essential skills that help build creativity and other social-emotional skills. Even though we are in an era of technology where computers and calculators are preferred for calculations, Abacus is still being used by teachers in many schools.
The Abacus Background
Centuries before the adoption of Hindu-Arabic numeral system, the calculating tool used was the Abacus. The Abacus, which is a counting frame, was widely prevalent in ancient times. Studies say that the Abacus originated in Babylon while others are not sure about its origin. Regarded as the world’s first computer, the abacus travelled everywhere as it became quite popular. As it travelled through Russia, China, Japan, the Middle East, and Europe, it gathered a variety of identities. It is known as Soroban in Japan and is considered the most widely used Abacus design. In China, they call it the Suanpan. The design of the Abacus evolved based on the counting needs of the country.
The Abacus design.
Initially the Abacus consisted of rows of wires with movable beads. As the design evolved later, the beads were built to slide on wooden frames to enable faster movement.
Counting on the Abacus
Each bead on the Abacus represents a digit. Once one of the two numbers is set up, the beads can be moved according to the operation to be performed. E.g., Addition, subtraction, square root, or cubic root. While in the beginning the Abacus was used for just fundamental calculations, later the idea of positional notation was used.
How to count on the Abacus (video)
The influence of Abacus
Abacus has an important influence in the cognitive development of the child. This directly or indirectly impacts academic performance, flair for the subject and other social-emotional benefits. Read on to know why children should learn Abacus.
4 Powerful reasons why children should learn Abacus
Children learn to love Math
Yeah! That is right! Proficiency in Math moves up quite a few notches and children learn to love Math. That is because learning on the Abacus leads to better understanding of math concepts. The ability to grasp the concepts faster increases and children can retain them for a sustained period. With regular practice sessions, visualization improves tremendously and the child will be able to achieve outstanding aptitude in mathematical mental calculations. This positive association with learning fosters a love for the subject.
Children attain Higher Order Thinking
All those Olympiad books that were put away in a corner because the questions were too difficult to understand, will soon see the light of day. Abacus hones Critical thinking skills and Higher Order thinking. This directly translates to children being able to improve their application of knowledge and concepts. They also improve the ability to categorize patterns, concepts, and information. This ability to categorize information has a direct influence on logical thinking and reasoning. Children will approach problem-solving in a creative manner. They will pick up the ability to multitask and problem analysis becomes easier.
The birth of a ‘Teacher’s Pet’
Abacus significantly improves sustained attention, which means the classroom will have a more attentive student. Children will be able to have better concentration, listening skills, improve their speed and accuracy at Math and enhanced memory skills. Now, if that does not make a Teacher’s Pet, then what else will?
Empowers Children
Learning Abacus can have a positive impact on Social and Emotional learning for children. It is known to significantly improve both Interpersonal and Intrapersonal skills. Once a child begins to reap the benefits of understanding Abacus, self-confidence automatically sets in. Learning Abacus also fosters good discipline and time-management. An Abacus session requires complete focus and hence children can get engrossed in the activity. This focus helps with Response Inhibition, wherein children learn to control inappropriate behavior and drown out external distractions.
Conclusion
Learning Abacus can be fun and interesting. Please check our website for details on the Abacus course.
Abacus-World's first calculator | History of Computers (cuemath.com), Abacus for schools - Teach abacus at schools - Abacus Master Abacus - Wikipedia
