Abacus Starter for ages 5–10
The abacus turns numbers into something children can see and touch, which is why it builds such strong mental arithmetic. This starter workshop covers what a full abacus course does in its first month: reading and setting numbers, the 'small friends' and 'big friends' that make carrying easy, and the first sums done by picturing the beads.
Adding and subtracting two-digit numbers on the abacus, and the first steps of doing it in their head
How 5 sessions get there
Each session is 45 minutes, live, and builds on the last. Your child is doing something for most of it.
Upper beads are worth five, lower beads one. Set and read numbers from 1 to 99 with the right fingers.
Add and subtract when the beads are free to move. Speed drills with the flash cards from the kit.
Pairs that make five. Learn the moves for sums like 4 + 3 when there aren't enough lower beads.
Pairs that make ten, and carrying to the next rod. Two-digit sums become routine.
First steps of mental abacus: move imaginary beads for simple sums, then a friendly timed challenge.
What's in the Abacus Kit
Everything your child needs for the sessions arrives in one box before session 1, and all of it is theirs to keep.
- 17-rod student abacus
- Practice book with a page for each day
- 50 number flash cards
- Sticker progress chart
Live with a coach, hands on the kit
Here is session 2. The coach shows one idea, the children try it straight away with the kit, and they hold their work up to the camera for feedback.
What your family needs to know
You'll need
- A table and a quiet corner
- Ten minutes of practice on most days between sessions
Ready if
Your child knows numbers to 20 and can count objects reliably.
Where you come in
Ten minutes a day with the practice book matters more than anything in the sessions. A star on the chart helps.
Reserve a seat
guru.cool will call to confirm a batch time and the fee, and where the kit should go.
About Abacus Starter
Is five sessions enough to learn the abacus?
Will the abacus method confuse what they learn at school?
Who runs this workshop?
What happens after I reserve a seat?
When does the kit arrive, and can we keep it?
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5 sessions for ages 5 to 10, ending with adding and subtracting two-digit numbers on the abacus, and the first steps of doing it in their head.