Abacus : Five Primary Learning Benefits
We all need all-rounders in our child. With increasing competition and heightening level of studies and performance thereon, there has been a good amount of pressure over children to perform these days. All the parents want their kids to excel, in studies, sports, games, dance, music, and what not! Parents are ready to invest more and more for their children’s mental and physical development.
In recent times, there has been a steep increase in parents who want their kids to spend most of their time in learning and gaining new skills. Kids are going for mental mathematics, speed maths, speed reading, brain gym, vedic mathematics, abacus and so on. The importance of abacus, in particular, is something which we are going to discuss in this article.
Abacus has been gaining speed in current times. Earlier, there there has been a constant confusion among parents whether they should make their child learn abacus or not, and whether it brings any value add to the child. I have been a part of so many discussions over the same in person, emails, chat as well as social media, wherein parents are constantly seeking advise over abacus learning benefits.
As an abacus instructor by my self, I would like to highlight the key five benefits which your child gets out of learning abacus.
CONCENTRATION
While being trained in this technique, a child not only learns how to calculate (add, subtract, multiply and divide) using the device, but also learns how to perform calculations within their mind, using a technique called “Visualization”.
Visualization is a technique of assuming the tool within our own mind, and virtually performing the calculations as if these are done practically over an abacus. As the calculations are done within mind, the child remembers each and every step, which is possible with concentration in place. Thus, as the child progressively keeps on doing calculations, his concentration keeps on increasing, which helps him overall in his studies.
A boost in concentration, also helps the child to focus on a specific problem. When the child is solving a mathematical problem in his mind, he focuses on reaching the ultimate goal-post of performing the last step of the calculation, i.e. fetching the answer, which is by and large always correct!
ANALYTICAL SKILLS
Solving problems using this technique includes solving the same problems with multiple simple formulas. The child analyzes on the spot for the usage of correct formula, and uses the same in the problem. This helps him build his analytical capabilities. The child starts analyzing real life situations too from multiple angles from early years, which makes him wiser to analyze the situation correctly and use the right approach for a problem.
RETENTION
Retention, or in simple words, we call it memory. Solving a problem with visualization needs a child to remember the answer at each and every step (or the last position of beads on the abacus), which makes him assimilate more and more in his mind. By continuously practicing visualization technique, a child subconsciously keeps on memorizing questions, answers, steps to solution and so on, which helps him boost his memorizing capacity.
This, in turn, helps the child in remembering and assimilating other information as well as subjects too with much of ease rather than spending much time and efforts to memorize the content.
SPEED
Visualization, with continuous practice, makes a child answer a mathematical calculation amazingly fast. To explain this in simplest terms, if you start dictating a maths addition or subtraction problem to a layman with a calculator and a child who know abacus, you will be amazed to see that the child is everytime at par in speed with that of a calculator, and many times, even faster than a calculator. You can validate this statement yourselves by searching abacus videos on youtube.
CONFIDENCE
A child who learns abacus overcomes the fear of maths. Abacus makes him answer mathematical problems at a lightening speed with accuracy. When the same thing happens every time, maths seems to be like a sport to the child in which he has mastered. This makes him confident amongst his peer groups, outside his groups, home or anywhere.
These are the five most evident benefits of learning this tool, but in fact, there are many other big and small benefits which a child derives out of abacus learning. I highly advise parents to make their child learn abacus, preferably starting in early years (age 4 onwards).
In case you are interested to know more about these benefits, you can ask your questions in comments or email at jyoti@augmentedutech.com, I would be happy to answer.
Learn more about the history of Abacus at Wikipedia
