Material
- Small cards of the decimal system
- Small bead frame
First Exercise: Simple Sum
1. Child lays out the small cards of the decimal system as such,
1
20
300
3000
2. Select a number, ‘simple’ at first, e.g. 3321 x 3 and lay out with the cards (as above).
3. When moving over the beads, the child might either say: ‘One unit taken 3 times is 3, and chooses 3 units all together-or put them over one at a time.
4. He writes his answer with the small card.
Second Exercise: Dynamic Sums–e.g.1562×4
Direct Aim: To prepare the child for long multiplication. To enrich his concept of multiplication.
He still uses the cards and does not record until later. Analyse the sum with him.
Step 1: 2 units taken 4 times are 8. Slide over the unit beads.
Step 2: 6 tens taken 4 times are 2 hundreds and 4 tens-slide over the same.
Step 3: 5 hundreds taken 4 times are 20 hundreds which is 2,000-slide over 2 thousand beads.
Step 4: 1 thousand taken 4 times is 4,000-Slide over the beads to join the two already there. So our answer is 6,248.
After a while lay aside the cards. Write the sum and use the frame to get the answer. Later the child does the sum completely in the abstract without any material aid.