Improved Apparatus for Teaching Arithmetic.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 28th Apr., 1898-Accepted, 18th June, 1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Apparatus for Teaching Arithmetic.
A communication from LOUIS EDOUARD NIERAT, of 7, Rue Royale, Annecy, in
the Republic of France, Printer.
I, ALFRED JULIUS BOULT, of 111, Hatton Garden, in the County of Middlesex,
Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
-
The present invention relates to a new apparatus for children, which whilst
amusing them, teaches them the four rules of arithmetic, but more particularly
multiplication.
This apparatus consists 1) of a table or board with any desired number of com-
partments arranged in vertical and horizontal rows or columms, at the top and
at the sides of which are written figures 1, 2, 3 .
etc., say up to 12.
2) of a series of pawns or blocks or counters of square or other shape, the
numbers to be multiplied being inscribed or printed on one face and their pro-
duct on the other face.
The table itself may be a board divided into say 144 compartments; these com-
partments are made so as to hold or retain in any manner the blocks either in
recesses, or on pins. The accompanying drawing illustrates by way of example,
one board having recessed compartments and another being provided with points.
Fig. 1 is a front view of a board with recessed compartments.
Fig. 2 is a section on an enlarged scale of a portion of the board.
Fig. 3 is a section of a portion of a board provided points.
Fig. 4 shows a counter or block full size.
The apparatus is used as follows:-The child takes any block out of its recep-
tacle. He reads at first the two multiplicators on one face, then turns the block
over and finds the product of the two numbers written upon it. He will find
this product a second time when placing the block in its compartment of the board.
This compartment is necessarily at the point of intersection of two lines one
vertical and the other horizontal, the first one serving as an indicating guide for
the figure to be multiplied written on the block, the second-for the other number
also inscribed on the block.
For instance: The child takes up the block 6 × 8. He turns it upside down
and finds that the product is 48. He then finds the 6 on the side of the board,
and the figure 8 on the top line of figures on the board, and at the point of
intersection of these two lines he will find the right compartment and will place
the block in it repeating for the second time the product, that is to say 48.
The teacher can instruct him to place the block so that either the multipliers,
or the product appear on its face when in position.
This double calculating exercise by which the child is made to find and to
repeat twice the product of two figures, will impress the lesson to be taught upon
his memory.

page_text: Having succeeded in filling up all the spaces he will have formed one of the
tables shown in Figs. 5 or 6.
By reversing the counters in Fig. 6 the teacher can see at once whether the
blocks have been placed correctly in position.
The first figure in each column of blocks will always be the number contained
in the corresponding lateral row of figures on the board, and the second figure
will always be that of the upper row. By reading horizontally the teacher will
find in the first row the figure 1 always repeated as the first figure in each block,
then a line of two's and so on. By reading vertically the column of second
figures will be a constant repetition of the top (or bottom) figures of the column.
With the help of the table shown in Fig. 6 the teacher will be able to teach the
children to add by 2, then by 3, then by 4 etc. The same table may be used to
subtract 2, then 3 etc., going up each column of two's and three's from bottom
to top.
By taking any figure of the table as the dividend, and by going up (or down)
to the horizontal line of figures the divider will be found, the figure on the vertical
column opposite the dividend being the quotient.
Finally the diagonal line going from 1 to 144 gives the square of figures from 1
to 12.
With only one table, several children may use the apparatus. For this pur-
pose there will be provided several cards each having written or printed on it
numbers 1 to say 12 with the particular number of the card in the left hand
margin. This latter number represents a factor or multiplier and each of the
top horizontal row of figures another factor. Under the latter are spaces for the
products.
Such a card is shown in Fig. 7.
Each child has one of these cards before him, the teacher names two factors
and the child puts a block on the product of these two factors.. In this case the
board with the blocks is used only for the teacher to verify the operations of the
children on their respective cards.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion as communicated to me by my foreign correspondent and in what manner
the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is: -
1. Apparatus for teaching arithmetic particularly multiplication, consisting of
a table or board divided into a series of vertical and horizontal compartments
constructed so as to hold or retain blocks or counters on one face of which are
inscribed two factors and on the other their product substantially as described.
2. In combination with the apparatus described a series of cards each marked
with a particular number forming one of the factors d having a series of figures
placed in a line forming the other factors and spaces or means for retaining
counters having the corresponding products inscribed thereon under the latter
substantially as described.
Dated this 28th day of April 1898