The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1882-06-07

BY A. c. HuLBRRr.
CHAPTER VIM.

CuAI Eh 4AAs
1fIn my school days, and long after
y commenced teaching, arithmetic
as divided into mental and writ
fn arithmetic. These divisions
Y Iere considered as separate studies.
IDne might be able to go through a
fbrrn Of analysis and obtain the cor
Iect results to examples, of whose
kriften work he would be utterly
Ipnorant. Mental arithmetic was
loade hobby, and it was ridden to
heath. Now has come Q reaction,
bnd the CRY is, s'no mental arithme-
kic." County superintendent are
Icutting il. off the certificates, and the
|grsde Is marked simply on arithme-
tic.
Books are prepared in accordance
With the new ideas. Some OF them
approach very near perfection; 9TH
crs are q mere dovetailing of a men
| tai arithmetic with a written, hut
the new ideas are visible everywhere.
| Whether or not all this is wise |
| shall not say. lido not believe in
1 having hobbies in our teaching. l
\ do not believe in cultivating one
branch at the expense OF another.
\ / have turned out mental arithmetic
classes of which feel proud to-day,
\ but not one of them was fostered at
the expense of any other study. l
am aware that not every teacher can
4 truthfully say so much. l am aware
4 that for years with many teachers It
4 has been arithmetic first, last, and
\ all the time, so much so that many
teachers seemed to think the whole
duty of man was to teach and learn
| arithmetic.
II is not all of life to know any
one branch. The reactions that are
taking place in theeducational world
show that this fact is being recog-
nized.
In regard to arithmetical text
books. there is none which gives all
that Il is desirable to know; there
! can be none which will do so, but
1 any one will gife the groundwork
Here is question which perhaps
4 not a man Oh earth can solve and
explain satisfactorily to a learner by
H the aid of common arithmetic mere
Iv. sSold a hose for $50 and gained
o,,,f oe tho horse coS-
II me. required the cost" Iknow o
lno mode of solution. by common
arithmetic. Proportion will noI
nouch it. Tie good old rule called
tsposition," Fhich most persons arr
+ now ipnorait Of, will not reach it
= hut this rull will bring the answer
i and will sotc any similar question
7 Rule: Mulbly the selling price by
4 1OO. add DO to the product; of the
sum extrtt the square root, and
from the loot subtract 80. The re
mainder B the cost. If you apply
the aboj rule you will obtain SAC
as the aswer. How do | get the
rule? q the solution Of a quad.
70 ratio eqttion.
. rherdlre, as you of course know
y four fundamental rules of arithme
= = tic. andhe great point for any ons
: who e3ects to make an arithmeti
clan. iko secure perfect familiarity
with 3em. / am well aware thaf
tbo noioritv of pupils in our public
school cannot add, subtract, multi
DIV ad divide readily. Go into any
lschod and put out such question
az II following: 8, 8, 5, T., 8. 7, s, 8
6.5.l. 2, /, sum" and see how many
wiliIhave it when you pronounce
the word SUM" Send a class tt
The blackboard and give them {
similar question. Notice how many
Olof hem will run up the result OF
|. thdr fingers. They do this rapidly
8, butt ie merely counting. 1t is moi
addition. Train the children to add
nd to count. The same may b
!. lsad in regard to each of the othel
rides. Do not expect to accomplish
wnderful results in a day or week
lIwill require months of the mos
ssiduous work. Careful drill, day
II liter day, and If your class are new
9 Vt the business when you take hole
+ bf them, your work will begin t.
i manifest itself toward the end o
vour five months term.
Do not attempt TO force your pu
A pills into long and heavy addition
at the start You must instruc
them in the combinations of tn
|, ldigits slowly, increasing your col
umns as you 60 on. At length yo'
will reach q point at which they cal
combine all the numbers--can ado
them, not count them.
How many are 8, s, 7, 6? If
/. boy can answer as soon as you ent
lvour question 80, he can add thos
numbers, but if, on the other hand
be must begin 80 and 8 are IT," ant
then on his fingers, "1S, 19, 20, p
%, %, "a and 6 are thirty" he can
not add, and he never will be abl
Ito add until the sum of numbers i
suggested by the very number 0
them. Many o boy will multiply
with tolerab1e ease as far as 10, bu
when you put him to multiply b.
liz, for instance, he uses the figures
separately. The trouble with tina
boy is simply that he does not thor
louRhly know the multiplication ia
bic, and the sooner you go to worl
TO drill il into him the better for al
parties concerned. Many of ou
4 arithmetics give this good old tabl'
only through the 9's. Why d.
not know, unless it is the outcrop
ping of the prevailing folly of beinl
80 exceedingly careful of the tende
. mind of childhood. There is an i'm
mense amount Of routine work tina
must Be forced upon the tender mint
iof childhood, or it will never b
done. l verify believe that there j
ltoo much sentimental bosh obtainin,
ready credence ct tho present day
iThUchiidas mind is not going to b
Let al injured by few columns NOR
of multiplication table, or if it is,
vass tender plant-too tender 70
/, lthis world. The Lord may find US
fof il IL the world to come, but
!. could meyer have amounted to any