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Space and Astronomy
- Mars: Just the Beginning? – Lesson
- Mars: Just the Beginning? – Quiz
- Six Billion ‘Earth-like’ Planets in the Milky Way Galaxy? – Lesson
- Six Billion ‘Earth-like’ Planets in the Milky Way Galaxy? – Quiz
- Did NASA Scientists Find Another Universe? – Lesson
- Did NASA Scientists Find Another Universe? – Quiz
- A New Planet Was Discovered – And Old Theories Must Change – Lesson
- A New Planet Was Discovered – And Old Theories Must Change – Quiz
- SpaceX Completes First Civilian Trip to Space – Lesson
- SpaceX Completes First Civilian Trip to Space – Quiz
- First Movie Filmed in Space Successful – Lesson
- First Movie Filmed in Space Successful – Quiz
- James Webb Telescope Heads to Deep Space – Lesson
- James Webb Telescope Heads to Deep Space – Quiz
- A Lot Is Happening on and Around the Moon – Lesson
- A Lot Is Happening on and Around the Moon – Quiz
- First-Ever Picture Taken of the Milky Way’s Black Hole – Lesson
- First-Ever Picture Taken of the Milky Way’s Black Hole – Quiz
- First James Webb Telescope Images Revealed – Lesson
- First James Webb Telescope Images Revealed – Quiz
- Buzz Aldrin Sells Jacket from the Moon Landing – Lesson
- Buzz Aldrin Sells Jacket from the Moon Landing – Quiz
- Humans at Home on the Moon – Could It Really Happen in This Decade? – Lesson
- Humans at Home on the Moon – Could It Really Happen in This Decade? – Quiz
- Winter on Mars – Lesson
- Winter on Mars – Quiz
- Pictures of Mars Show Hidden Figures – Lesson
- Pictures of Mars Show Hidden Figures – Quiz
- Jupiter and Venus Appear to ‘Kiss’ – Lesson
- Jupiter and Venus Appear to ‘Kiss’ – Quiz
- The James Webb Telescope Finds Six Ancient Galaxies – Lesson
- The James Webb Telescope Finds Six Ancient Galaxies – Quiz
- Would an EpiPen Work in Space? – Lesson
- Would an EpiPen Work in Space? – Quiz
- Satellite Spots Earth’s Second Moon? – Lesson
- Satellite Spots Earth’s Second Moon? – Quiz
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The Environment
- Red Tide: No Fun in the Florida Sun – Lesson
- Red Tide: No Fun in the Florida Sun – Quiz
- Leaded Gas Eradicated from the World, Says United Nations – Lesson
- Leaded Gas Eradicated from the World, Says United Nations – Quiz
- COVID Plastic Waste: A Big Problem for Oceans – Lesson
- COVID Plastic Waste: A Big Problem for Oceans – Quiz
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Archaeology and Paleontology
- Ancient Human Species Discovered – Lesson
- Ancient Human Species Discovered – Quiz
- Biblical City of Sodom Found in the Jordan Valley? – Lesson
- Biblical City of Sodom Found in the Jordan Valley? – Quiz
- Antarctic Explorer’s Ship Found After a Century – Lesson
- Antarctic Explorer’s Ship Found After a Century – Quiz
- Newly Found Diary Shows How Ancient Egyptians Built the Pyramids – Lesson
- Newly Found Diary Shows How Ancient Egyptians Built the Pyramids – Quiz
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Technology
- 3 Reasons to Protect Your Online Privacy – Lesson – VIDEO
- The Rise of Deepfakes – Lesson
- The Rise of Deepfakes – Quiz
- A New Mayflower Voyage, Captained by AI Technology – Lesson
- A New Mayflower Voyage, Captained by AI Technology – Quiz
- The Latest Supercomputer Is Breaking Speed Barriers – Lesson
- The Latest Supercomputer Is Breaking Speed Barriers – Quiz
- LNGenZ Survey: What is the Greatest American Invention? – Lesson
- LNGenZ Survey: What is the Greatest American Invention? – Quiz
- School and ChatGPT – Is it Cheating? – Lesson
- School and ChatGPT – Is it Cheating? – Quiz
- Artificial Intelligence Gets an Upgrade? – Lesson
- Artificial Intelligence Gets an Upgrade? – Quiz
- Scientists Plan to Bring the Dodo Bird Back from Extinction – Lesson
- Scientists Plan to Bring the Dodo Bird Back from Extinction – Quiz
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Mind and Body
- Teen Scientist’s Invention Mixes Music with Mental Health – Lesson
- Teen Scientist’s Invention Mixes Music with Mental Health – Quiz
- Man Receives First Pig Heart Transplant – Lesson
- Man Receives First Pig Heart Transplant – Quiz
- Sniffing Out the Truth About Smells – Lesson
- Sniffing Out the Truth About Smells – Quiz
- The Power of Playtime – Lesson
- The Power of Playtime – Quiz
- Is Language Getting More Emotional? – Lesson
- Is Language Getting More Emotional? – Quiz
- Scientists Say Household Chores Help Kids’ Brains – Lesson
- Scientists Say Household Chores Help Kids’ Brains – Quiz
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Flora and Fauna
- Dogs Can Tell When Humans Make a Mistake, Says Study – Lesson
- Dogs Can Tell When Humans Make a Mistake, Says Study – Quiz
- Jonathan: The World’s Oldest Living Tortoise – Lesson
- Jonathan: The World’s Oldest Living Tortoise – Quiz
- The Monarch Butterfly Makes a Surprise Return – Lesson
- The Monarch Butterfly Makes a Surprise Return – Quiz
- Bat Falcon Spotted in the United States for the First Time – Lesson
- Bat Falcon Spotted in United States for the First Time – Quiz
- Charles Darwin’s Notebooks Mysteriously Returned after 20 Years – Lesson
- Charles Darwin’s Notebooks Mysteriously Returned after 20 Years – Quiz
- Six Endangered Red Wolf Pups Born in Wildlife Refuge – Lesson
- Six Endangered Red Wolf Pups Born in Wildlife Refuge – Quiz
- Scientists Record Never-Before-Heard Whale Call – Lesson
- Scientists Record Never-Before Heard Whale Call – Quiz
- Underwater Meadow Gets Credit as the World’s Largest Living Plant – Lesson
- Underwater Meadow Gets Credit as the World’s Largest Living Plant – Quiz
- Scientists Trying to Bring the Tasmanian Tiger Back from Extinction – Lesson
- Scientists Trying to Bring the Tasmanian Tiger Back from Extinction – Quiz
- Jurassic Era Insect Found at Arizona Walmart – Lesson
- Jurassic Era Insect Found at Arizona Walmart – Quiz
- The Comeback of the Nearly Extinct Earless Lizard – Lesson
- The Comeback of the Nearly Extinct Earless Lizard – Quiz
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Mathematics
- Metric vs. Imperial: A Weighty Debate in Britain – Lesson
- Metric vs. Imperial: A Weighty Debate in Britain – Quiz
- The Abacus is Helping Kids Master Math Skills – Lesson
- The Abacus is Helping Kids Master Math Skills – Quiz
- Retired Engineer Discovers ‘Einstein’ Shape – Lesson
- Retired Engineer Discovers ‘Einstein’ Shape – Quiz
The Abacus is Helping Kids Master Math Skills – Lesson
Math is one of the most challenging subjects for many kids. A lack of confidence, a reliance on memorization, and high levels of pressure mean that students often struggle to understand this complex subject. Yet, for many, a simple piece of equipment is proving to help when it comes to mastering mathematics skills. The abacus is an ancient counting device made up of beads and rods that aid in solving addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division problems. To use the device, a person counts by moving the beads to different positions along the rods.
The exact origin of the abacus isn’t known, but early versions can be traced back to Mesopotamian society in around 2700–2300 BC.

(Photo credit Costfoto/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
How the Abacus Helped Dhruv
Dhruv, a British boy of Indian heritage, was struggling to do addition and subtraction problems at school. His mother, Dr. Rashmi Manti, noticed the problem and decided to introduce her son to an abacus. She used the tool when she was a child, which helped her view and calculate numbers in a different way. Within six days, she started seeing an improvement. By the age of 12, Dhruv had gotten so confident with math that he started giving online cyber-security seminars and is now pursuing a career in Data Science – a field that looks at statistics, including lots of numbers.
Dhruv’s mom is extremely pleased with the results. She said, “I never thought I would teach him using an abacus, but it was something I used as a child in India and it was always helpful.”
“I decided to change the way he looked at numbers … An abacus is a tried and tested method, the Egyptians used them for building the pyramids,” Dr. Manti added. “They become a playing tool for younger children, it feels like a game. I think the success comes because children can touch and feel an abacus and visualize them.”
An Ancient Tool in the Modern Day
Other countries in Asia, Europe, and Russia have used abacuses as learning tools for centuries. The ancient technique has not lost its usefulness in Japan, as thousands of Japanese students still use the device today. Known there as a soroban, the abacus is no longer an official part of the curriculum, but many teachers still encourage its use. Students can also take soroban courses as an elective or extracurricular activity.
In July 2022, hundreds of Japanese students gathered in Kyoto to compete against one another and show off their soroban skills. The contest winner was 16-year-old Daiki Kamino, who calculated a 16-digit sum using the methods learned with an abacus. He shared a bit of his thought process, saying, “I listen and move my fingers and repeat the numbers in my head. As soon as I hear the unit like trillion and billion, I start to move my fingers.”
One Japanese businesswoman, Chika Yamauchi, recently took a more modern approach and developed an app that uses the same calculation methods as an abacus. Though the app is virtual, pupils can still use a hands-on approach as they move the beads on the screen. As a result, the kids feel as though they are playing a game, all the while improving their math skills.
Spreading the Abacus Around the World

(Photo by Ayush chopra/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
One group of students has been trying out the abacus in Sydney, Australia. “I think it’s probably heaps better than a calculator because with a calculator you just press some buttons but here you use your brain,” says Gabriella, who is learning to use the ancient tool. Teacher Benson Ng, who learned how to use the abacus in Taiwan, says the benefits are greater than just learning math. “It trains the brain to be active and in a way it’s good for memory, good for imagination, listening and observation,” he commented.
Jeonghee Lee, the world abacus champion, believes that every person should know how to use the math tool. Now 59, Lee began using an abacus in the fourth grade and mastered the skill. She moved from South Korea to the US to help others learn the ancient technique and hopes that she can help improve the tool’s popularity worldwide. “My dream is to spread [its usage] around the world,” Lee said. “It improves your memory. Everyone needs the abacus.”
Do you think an abacus could be useful in American classrooms? Would it help American students understand math and calculate numbers?