Many parents probably dream of their baby growing up special and certainly becoming such that they can be proud of. But if some dads and mothers only boast about the abilities of their children, then others lead them to special schools that help develop the makings given by nature.
Is it possible to grow a genius from a child? If in earlier times the answer to such a question was unequivocal and required talent and amazing abilities, today the task is much simpler. For example, in order for a child to show remarkable knowledge in mathematics and count as fast and correctly as a calculator, an unusual program is offered that will teach the child mathematics. And it is called "mental arithmetic." What is this program and what are its advantages?
Method popularity
Since 1993, mental arithmetic has been used to educate children in 52 countries, from Canada to the United Kingdom. In some of them, the methodology is recommended for inclusion in schools.
The most common mental account was in the countries of the Middle East, as well as in China, Australia, Thailand, Austria, the USA and Canada. Specialized organizations begin to appear in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia.
The mental account is one of the youngest and rapidly developing methods used for children's education. Thanks to this technique, it is possible to easily develop the child’s mental abilities, which primarily have a mathematical focus. Thanks to the mastery of the technique of mental counting by children, any mathematical task for them turns into a simple and fast computing process.
History of occurrence
The method of mental counting has ancient roots. And this despite the fact that it was developed relatively recently by a Turkish scientist Halit Shen. What did he use for his mental account system? Abacus, which was created in China 5 thousand years ago. This subject represents scores that have made a huge contribution to the development of world arithmetic. After the invention, the abacus began its gradual distribution throughout the world. In the 16th century, he came from China to Japan. For four hundred years, the inhabitants of the Land of the Rising Sun not only successfully used such scores, but also carefully worked them out, trying to improve such an object, necessary for performing arithmetic operations. And they succeeded. The Japanese created accounts of sorobans, which are still used to educate children in primary school to this day.
Throughout the history of the development of mankind, mathematical science has improved. And today she can offer us a huge amount of her achievements. But, despite this, scientists believe that using the abacus is more useful in teaching children an accurate account.
The benefits of mental arithmetic
It is believed that each of the hemispheres of the human brain is responsible for its own directions. So, the right of them allows you to develop creativity, imaginative perception and thinking. The left is responsible for logical thinking.
The activity of the hemispheres is activated at the moment when a person begins to work with his hands. If the right of them is active, then the left hemisphere begins to work. And vice versa. A person working with his left hand helps to activate the work of the right hemisphere.
Menar's task is to make the whole brain take part in the educational process.How to achieve such results? This is possible when performing mathematical operations on the abacus with both hands. Ultimately, menar contributes to the development of quick counting, as well as the development and improvement of analytical skills.
Scientists compared the calculator with the abacus and came to the unequivocal conclusion that the first one relaxes brain activity. Abacus, on the contrary, hones and trains the hemisphere.
When should you start learning mental counts? Responses of adherents of this technique argue that it is best to master this method at the age of four to twelve years. And only in some cases can the period be extended for another four years. This is the time when the rapid development of the brain occurs. And this fact is a wonderful message to instill in the child basic skills, conduct foreign language studies, develop thinking, master the playing of musical instruments and martial arts.
The essence of the mental technique
The entire program for the development of oral accounts is built on the sequential passage of two stages. At the first of them, familiarization and mastery of the technique of performing arithmetic operations using seeds, during which two hands are simultaneously involved, takes place. Thanks to this, both the left and right hemispheres participate in the process. This allows you to achieve the fastest assimilation and implementation of arithmetic operations. In his work, the child uses an abacus. This item allows him to completely subtract and multiply, add and divide, calculate the square and cubic root.
During the passage of the second stage, students learn the mental account, which is produced in the mind. The child ceases to constantly become attached to the abacus, which also stimulates his imagination. The left hemispheres of children perceive numbers, and the right ones - the image of knuckles. The method of mental counting is based on this. The brain begins to work with an imaginary abacus, while perceiving numbers in the form of pictures. Performing a mathematical calculation is associated with the movement of the seeds.
Learning the mental arithmetic of quick counting is a very interesting and fascinating process. It is appreciated by hundreds of thousands of people and received a huge number of positive reviews.
Abacus
What is this mysterious and ancient calculating machine? Abacus, or abacus for mental counting, is very reminiscent of the old Soviet "knuckles". Very similar is the principle of operation on these two devices. What is the difference between these accounts? It is enclosed in the number of knuckles on the knitting needles and in ease of use.
It is worth saying that in order to get the result, the abacus will require more hand movements. How does this ancient object come to us from China? It is a frame in which knitting needles are inserted. Moreover, their number may be different. Five knitted knuckles are on the knitting needles.
The length of each spoke crosses the dividing bar. Above it is one knuckle, and under it, respectively, four.
The method of mental counting provides for a certain movement of a person with fingers. Of these, only the index and large are involved. All movements should be brought to automatism, which is facilitated by their repeated repetition.
Interestingly, this skill can easily be lost. That is why you should not miss classes when mastering the technique.
Number arrangement
What are the basics of counting in mental arithmetic? In order to master this technique, you need to know how the numerical rulers are located on the abacus. On its right side are units. After that there are tens, then hundreds, after thousands, tens of thousands and so on. Each of these categories is located on a separate spoke.
The knuckles located under the dividing bar are “1”, and above it is “5”.For example, in order to dial the number 3 on an abacus, you will need to separate three knuckles located under the dividing bar on the spoke to the right of the others. Consider an example with double numbers, for example, with 15. To dial it on an abacus, raise one knuckle on the knitting needle of dozens and lower the one located above the upper bar on the knitting needle of units.
Addition operations
How to learn a mental account? To do this, you need to study how arithmetic is performed on the abacus. Consider, for example, addition. Let's see what the sum of numbers 22 and 13 will be equal to. First, you need to postpone two knuckles on the knitting needles of tens and units located at the bottom of the dividing bar. Next to the two dozen add one more. It will turn out 30. Now we proceed to the addition of units. Add two more to two. The result is the number "five", which is indicated by the knuckle at the top of the dividing bar. The result is 35. To master more complex operations, you will need to carefully study the specialized literature. After mastering the simplest examples, it is recommended to practice on the abacus. Thus, the training becomes as interesting as possible.
Mastering the second stage
After operations on the abacus will not cause difficulties, you can proceed to the oral calculation of mental arithmetic. This is the next level of learning. It involves a mental account, that is, produced in the mind. To do this, you need to make an abacus picture for the child. The easiest option is to print an image of this item, which must then be glued onto cardboard (you can take it from a shoe box). If possible, the picture should be in color. This will make it easier for the child to imagine her in his imagination.
To avoid mistakes, it is worth remembering that the mental account should be made from left to right. What needs to be done to postpone a two-digit number on the abacus? To do this, the child should first dial the knuckles with his left hand, corresponding to dozens, and after the right, separate the necessary units on the spoke.
So, for a set of 6, 7, 8 and 9, you should use a "Pinch". This process is the reduction of the index finger and thumb together to the dividing bar and the collection of knuckles, denoting the number 5, and their required number on the spoke, which is located in the lower part of the abacus. Subtraction of numbers is done in a similar way. The same “Pinch” simultaneously discarded the “fives” and the desired number of seeds below.
Objectives and results of the methodology
Learning the mental account allows the child to achieve unprecedented success in the field of mathematics. Children who have completed a special course can easily calculate ten-digit numbers in their minds, multiply them and subtract them. But it is worth saying that this is not the main goal of such training. Counting is just the way in which a person’s mental abilities are developed.
Mastering mental arithmetic contributes to the following:
- activation of visual and auditory memory;
- ability to concentrate;
- improving savvy and intuition;
- creative thinking;
- manifestation of self-confidence and independence;
- the rapid development of foreign languages;
- realization of abilities in the future.
In those cases when a professional approach was used to master the menar and the specialists achieved their goals, the child easily begins to solve both simple and complex math problems in his mind. And he produces arithmetic operations on multiplication and addition even faster than a calculator.
Mental arithmetic schools
Where can you learn this unique technique? To date, to study mental arithmetic, you must enroll in a specialized educational center. In them, specialists have been dealing with children for two to three years. In addition to the steps described above, with which you can master the technique, there are ten more steps. Moreover, each of them students pass in 2-3 months.
Each of these specialized centers develops its own training programs. However, despite this, there are general rules that absolutely everyone adheres to. They consist in the fact that groups of students are formed depending on their age. So, there are three basic types of such groups.
These are kinder, kids and junior. Classes are conducted by experienced highly qualified psychologists and teachers who have undergone appropriate training and have the necessary certification.
In addition to centers for training in mental counting, specialized schools that train specialists in the relevant field are working today. As a rule, menara teachers are people who have not only psychological and pedagogical education, but also some experience working with children. And this is very important. Indeed, learning mental account is not only the development of skills that allow you to work with ancient accounts. In this process, psychological characteristics used in pedagogical practice in the development of the child are certainly taken into account.
Reviews about the technique
Mental arithmetic is a fairly new program used to teach oral counting. However, despite the few years of existence, it has already managed to gain great popularity and has shown excellent results. The reviews of many parents and children confirm the fact that this program is not only effective, but also most useful. It should be borne in mind that menar can very well be successfully introduced into schooling, becoming for children an additional tool in mastering mathematical skills.
According to parents, excellent results in children can be observed after two to three months after the start of classes, which are held only a few hours a week. Many parents confirm that their child has noticeably improved memory, increased ability to concentrate, and thinking has taken on a creative character. At the same time, the student began to please his relatives with good grades, which he receives not only in mathematics classes. He increased his knowledge in all other subjects. In addition, a foreign language was easily given to him.
All this allows us to make an unambiguous conclusion that menar is not only a new way of mastering computing skills. The technique gives excellent results in the field of comprehensive development of the individual. In addition, during classes in mental arithmetic, the potential of a small person is activated. This contributes to the formation of a healthy and successful nature, which has a reliable and strong foundation, which allows you to easily enter adulthood.
