Abacus :  Not just the calculations, but brain development program 

EduVarta News Network

Abacus is no longer merely a tool for mathematical calculations, it has now become an essential instrument for a child’s mental development, offering numerous cognitive and logical thinking benefits. Research has also indicated that it helps improve memory, levels of concentration and a child’s performance in academics and life, in general.

The standard abacus can be used to perform addition, subtraction, division and multiplication; the abacus can also be used to extract square-roots and cubic roots. The beads are manipulated with either the index finger or the thumb of one hand. In light of these benefits, abacus classes have emerged as a crucial upskilling course and have become extremely popular. 

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The abacus, also called a counting frame, is a calculating tool which has been used since ancient times. It was used in the ancient Near East, Europe, China, and Russia, millennia before the adoption of the Hindu-Arabic numeral system. The exact origin of the abacus has not yet emerged.

While indicating benefits of Abacus, Mr. Girish Karde Director of 'Pro-active Abacus' said to 'EduVarta' that,  "Abacus is not just the calculations, it is a complete brain development program using visualization techniques to solve any problem instead of routine maths. Learning Abacus at a young age grooms your child’s creative side along with enhancing the problem-solving abilities." 

Mr. Karade also mentioned that, " It is a well-known fact that children fear mathematics and consider it to be a difficult subject. However, it is one of the most interesting if one invests time and approaches it correctly.  Abacus helps children love Maths and have fun with numbers by enriching their arithmetic skills. The fun filled approach inclines them towards numbers naturally and boosts their confidence and self-esteem for life. Our students perform calculations without the help of accessories like calculator, pencil, paper etc. as they are trained for active listening skills and rational application of numerical functions to solve the problem and produce accurate results with excellent concentration."

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He said, " The abacus trains the mind in such a way that it learns to avoid any distraction while calculating or carrying out mathematical operations. Abacus courses have a positive impact on children, especially when practised daily wherein they achieve a high level of concentration and memory. After mastering the abacus, they move on to a visualisation technique that helps them in carrying out calculations virtually which further boosts concentration and sharpens memory. Later, when children use these skills in other walks of lives they find themselves ahead of non-abacus individuals in executing various tasks — simple or tedious."

"Besides improving brain function, the abacus also helps in stimulating organs that result in the overall development of the child. The movement of the small beads immensely helps the child in developing their gross motor skills. When a child is solving a mathematical problem using an abacus, they are simultaneously honing their analytical skills. The capability to figure out which formula to use is nothing else but analytical skills. The development of analytical skills is not just restricted to the world of numbers, as the child grows, it will help them in real-life situations," said Mr. karade.