SIMPLE ADDITION ON THE PYTHABACUS:
When students are proficient at the association of the numerals and numbers, zero through ten, start the simple addition lesson. Begin the lesson with an addition version of the Duck-Duck-Goose game. With students sitting on the floor in a circle and one student standing say, "There was a little gnome that went mining stones and after breakfast he got two stones for his sack." The standing student begins going around the circle by counting two students while the teacher remains standing by the first student counted. After the standing student has counted two students the teacher says, "After snack the little gnome carried three more stones upon his back. Now how many altogether were in his sack." The student can now look back to where the teacher is standing and count all the students between themselves and the teacher to solve the addition question.
When the students are comfortable with this kinesthetic addition, continue the lesson with the same story motivating a fine motor activity using plasticene or flattened marbles to represent the jewels gathered by the little gnome. Give each student or group of students a bag of jewels, a two-inch and a six to ten-inch length of string. Now begin the story and have the students take from their bags the number of stones the little gnome mined before snack and place them upon their desk in a roll. (pic01) To the right of the roll have students place vertically their two-inch string with the roll midway the length of the string (pic02). Continue the story and have the students place to the right of the two-inch string the number of stones the gnome mined after snack. (pic03) Before the students count the stones to see how many the gnome mined altogether have the students place their six-inch string under and along the length of their roll of stones. (pic04) The vertically and horizontically placed strings should cross making a plus sign. While you are directing this activity draw the stones and strings on the board the way you want the students to place them.
Now the students are ready to draw a picture of the little gnome sitting on a resting stone with his sack upon his back with the stones he will gather drawn in a roll at the bottom of a cavern. (pic05) A vertical line is drawn between the stones to show how many the gnome will mine before and after snack.
Simple addition on the Pythabacus is demonstrated as follows. Reset beads on frame against the right post. and push the leftmost bottom bead against the left post. (pic12) Now to solve a problem such as 2 + 5 start your count with the remaining leftmost bead under the triangle and count to the right. First count 2 beads on the bottom row and push these against the left post. (pic13)
Then count 5 more bottom beads to the right and push these against the left post. (pic14) At this point you must push the second bead from the left post to the right leaving a diagonal column of beads above the bottom row bead against the left post. (pic15) The number of brown beads above the bottom bead of the column is the solution. Therefore 7 = 2 + 5
