The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1854-12-07

They are just what the letters of the al
phabet are to reading. We erpect to have
ait our pupils acquire such a power owe,
the letters of the alphabet as TO be able
to call each printed word the moment
their eyes fall upon it, No one is tol.
erablo reader who cannot do this readily
and easily, and no amount of labor ne.
cessary to give this power is regarded as
too much to devote to the primary les
sons in reading. So the child should be
drilled in this department of numbers, till
he has such a power over them that the
instant his eye falls on the number to be
combined, he can seize the result and use
it, Anything less than this is insufficient.
This power over numbers is easily ac-
quired as the power over the letters Of the
alphabet, to which have referred. And
how is that obtained! The child first
learns some Of the letters. Then the
teacher combines them in word, as CAT.
The teacher calls the word; lets the child
call it after him; points out the letters sep
arately and lets the child distinguish each;
points out the word in another place to
see if the child can recognize it; requires
the child to point it out and call it, now
by itself, now to select it from other
words;-and so he goes over it again and
again, day after day if need be, till the
word is learned. We b ave all been taught
in some such way as this, and what a
power do we possess in the art of reading
We take book which We have never be-
fore seen, and which treats on an unfa-
miliar subject, yet we can call the printed
words as rapidly as we can speak. Nay,
more; the eye and the mind can recognize
them more rapidly than the tongue can
utter them. So skilled may We become
in the mere mechanical art of reading
that we may read pages aloud, calling
every word correctly, and yet not note a
single thought which has been expressed
In reading, the eye is usually in advance
of the tongue. Who that reads much a.
loud, has not at some time or other found
his eye glancing at words printed in one
place, his tongue pronouDcing words print
ed in another, and his mind dwelling on
thoughts expressed by words printed in
still another?
A similar course would give our pupils
as great power over numbers. Ac-
countants often acquire it. An account
ant once told me that in adding up long
leger columns, he had often been sur
prised to find his eye at the top of the
column, the result of the addition at his
tongues end, while, as far as be knew.
his mind was engaged on numbers ex-
pressed between the bottom and top.
In passing to operations inv diving high
er numbers, they should be so presented
as to exhibit their dependence on the
primitive ones, and to secure at once ac-
curacy, confidence and rapidity. A thor
ough DR. i'll should be given upon the me-
cbanical processes, and to insure the best
possible results, the exercises should be
given in great variety of forms. l will
suggest few Of them.
How many are five, nine, eight, seven,
four, nine, six, eight, seven, six, eight, five,
nine, three and ski
How many are twenty -four, plus eight,
plus six, minus nine, minus four, plus sew
en-, minus eight, minus FIVE, plus seven,
plus nine, plus eight, minus tour, minus
six, plus two!
How many are five times seven, plus
one, divided by six, multiplied by nine,
minus six, divided by six, multiplied by
eight, plus nine, plus six, plus FIVE, diyid-
ed by seven!
Multiply three-fourths of twelve, by
two-sevcntbs of twenty eight, add one
eighth of forty, divide by one-seventh of
forty-nine, multiply by three.eighths of
sixteen, and add four -ninths of eighteen.
These are but few Of the forms in
which such exercises may be given. The
questions should be given as rapidly as
the condition of the class will allow, and
scholars may be proftably exercised upon
them, in connection with other work, at
all stages of their progress. No very
great amount of practice is necessary to
give pupils power of performing such
operations as rapidly as the tongue can
indicate them. | have to-day given these
examples no more rapidly than l am in
the habit of giving them to my own pupils,
or than they are given daily in some of
the Public Schools of this city.
BY such exercises, pupils not only gain
an almost perfect command over numeri-
cal operations, but they acquire great
mental activity and quickness of thought.
and power of concentrating their undi-
vided energies on the process they are
required to follow. They must shut out
from their mind, during the operation, ev-
erything which does not belong to it, or
they cannot obtain the result; for if
single number or step of the operation is
lost, it cannot be recalled, nor is there
any time to rectify errors. Such work,
then, aside from its arithmetical utility,
cannot fail to give much valuable mental
discipline.
The reasoning processes of Arithmetic
should receive the careful attention of the
teacher. They are sometimes apparently
difficult and complicated, but may always
be reduced to very simple Clements
Those involved in Multiplication and Di-
vision can be the most easily exhibited in
al I ,x;l l.