The abacus is an excellent substitute for rote memorization of multiplication tables. Abacus calculation relies on the manipulation of beads rather than use of traditional arithmetic. It teaches children to visualize numbers and their relationships and placement values.

Many schools in Asia, where abacus instruction is widely popular for teaching mental math/arithmetic, introduce the abacus between kindergarten and 4th grade. If a child starts learning the abacus before being taught traditional arithmetic, there is minimal conflict and the child will easily work within both systems. If a child starts the program later, having already received traditional foundations, there may be a slightly extended learning period for the child to accept and integrate the abacus method.

Educators in Asia say abacus skills are a key reason children in these countries consistently win top rankings in international math comparisons.

In 2003, U.S. performance in mathematics literacy and problem solving was lower than the average performance for most OECD (Organization for Education and Cooperative Development) countries. Korea and Japan ranked at or near the top in problem solving and combined math literacy.

You can incorporate easy, enjoyable abacus instruction into your child?™s free time or home-schooling curriculum with Learning Mathematics with the Abacus, a set of books developed specifically for teaching youngsters in grades 2, 3 and 4. We offer these books along with the Japanese Soroban abacus, which consists of a wooden frame divided into 2 parts separated by a beam, with one row of beads on the upper deck, and four rows on the lower deck.