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Arithmetic
in
different methods

Eladio J. Jovero
Teacher II
Pavia Pilot Elementary School
District of Pavia

September 2004

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Eladio J. Jovero 9/13/04
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History

Calculation tools. During most of human history, few people

used written numbers to calculate. Many numeration systems were
difficult to use, especially for multiplication and division. Writing
materials were also expensive until the mid-1800's, when machine-
made wood pulp paper became available.

Most ancient people used calculating objects, such as pebbles

and sticks, rather than written numbers. An individual manipulated the
objects on a board, a cloth, or some other surface. Lines drawn on the
surface helped the individual distinguish columns or rows that had
different numerical values.

People living in western Africa used a type of small seashell

called a cowrie shell for their calculations. The Inca of South America
calculated with kernels of wheat on a board. The ancient Greeks and
Romans used stones on wood or marble tables. The Chinese and
Japanese used small bamboo or wooden reckoning sticks on a board
divided into columns. Later, the use of an abacus, a counting device
with beads fastened on rods, became widespread in Asia and Russia.

Mechanical calculators that used gears began to appear in

Europe in the 1600's. In the 1940's, scientists and engineers built
electronic calculators using vacuum tubes. As smaller electronic
components were developed, electronic calculators became smaller,
faster, and cheaper. By the early 1990's, inexpensive handheld
calculators were available throughout the world.

Written arithmetic methods. The decimal system of numeration

made written calculations easy to perform. This system evolved in
India sometime between A.D. 600 and 900. Indian and Arabic scientists
and mathematicians devised a variety of arithmetic methods based on
the decimal system. By 1000, the Arabs had spread these methods
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throughout their empire, and the methods had begun to filter into
Europe.
The development of the printing press in Europe in the mid-
1400's enabled printers to produce inexpensive books. As a result,
arithmetic books written in the languages of the common people soon
became available. Prior to that time, arithmetic was taught mostly in
universities, which used the Latin language. By the 1800's, young
children were learning arithmetic in school in their own language.

Today, the availability of calculators makes it seem unnecessary

for older students to memorize and practice complicated arithmetic
procedures. But it is important to know how to determine whether an
answer obtained on a calculator is reasonable.

Arithmetic is the process of calculating by means of symbols

called numerals. It is the part of mathematics that concerns how to get
answers to addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division problems.
The word arithmetic comes from the Greek word arithmos, which
means number.

Mathematicians use the term number to mean an idea having to

do with the amount or quantity of a thing or things. They use numeral
to mean a symbol that represents a number. For example, the
numerals 6 and VI stand for the number also represented by the word
six. But in everyday language, number is also used to mean numeral.
The rest of this article uses number in the everyday way.

Many people use computers and calculators to do most of their

arithmetic, but much arithmetic is still done with pencil and paper.
Both methods of calculating rely on a numeration system (a system of
counting and naming numbers) that determines the value of a digit by
its position in a number.

The numeration system used by most people is called the

decimal system, or base 10 system. In this system, a digit is any one of
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the symbols 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9. Each position in a number

with two or more digits has a value 10 times greater than the position
to its right. And each position has a name that corresponds to its value.
The positions, from right to left, are called the ones' position/place
value, the tens' position/place value, the hundreds' position/place
value, the thousands' position/place value, and so on. Each position
has only one digit.

A computer or calculator does the actual arithmetic with another

numeration system, the binary system. However, the user enters the
problem in the decimal system, and the results are shown in the
decimal system. This article describes pencil-and-paper procedures for
calculating with the decimal system.

Addition

Several methods of addition are in use today. Methods A through

C shown here work from right to left. In the United States and Japan,
many people use method A. Whenever a column of numerals adds up
to 10 or more, you write the digit in the tens' place above the column
to the left. In the example shown, in the ones' column, 7 + 6 = 13. You
take one 10 from the 13 and write it as 1 above the tens' column. In
the hundreds' column, when you add 8 hundreds and 6 hundreds, you
get 14 hundreds. Because 10 hundreds equals 1 thousand, take 10
from the 14 hundreds and add 1 above the thousands' column as
shown below.

1 1
2847
A. +3 6 3 6
648 3
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Method B is similar to method A except that you add the 1 to the

top number instead of just writing the 1 above the column. Then you
have to add only two numbers, which for most people is much easier
than adding three. In the tens' column, the 4 becomes a 5 when you
add the one 10 from the ones' column. The procedure is express below.

3 5
2847
B. +3 6 3 6
648 3

In method C, all the answer is kept together on or below the line

instead of part of it moving above the columns. If the sum of a column
is 10 or more, write 1 on the line and then add it to the sum of the next
column. In this example, you move one 10 from the 13 in the ones'
column into the tens' column on the line. In the tens' column, after
adding 4 and 3 for a sum of 7, you add the 1 to the 7 for a total of 8.
Method C is easier than method A because you add the two numbers
you see above the line and then just increase the sum by 1.

2847
C. + 3 6 3 6
648 3

Method D does not require working from right to left. First, add
each column. Write the sum at the bottom of each column. In the next
step, modify any two-digit answer by adding the number in the tens'
position into the position to the left. For example, take 1 thousand-that
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is, 10 hundreds-from the 14 hundreds and add it to the thousands'

column. The total in the thousands' column then becomes 6.

2 8 4 7
D. + 3 6 3 6
5 14 7 13
6 4 8 3

In method E, you add from left to right without writing the

numbers carried to the next column. Many Europeans learn method E.
Before they write a sum in a column, they look at the next column to
the right to see whether it adds up to 10 or more. If it does, they
increase the sum of the column on which they are working by 1.

2 8 4 7
E. + 3 6 3 6
6 4 8 3

Methods F through H are commonly used by people who have

not learned formal calculation techniques. Many people use these
methods without writing down any of the steps. In method F, you first
add the values in each position-the ones, tens, and so on. Then add the
sums for all the positions to get the final answer.

F. 47+35= 70+12= 82
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Method G breaks down the process further. You add the numbers
in the position of highest value first. In this case, add the 40 from the
47 and the 30 from the 35: 40 + 30 = 70. Then add the 7 from the 47
for a total of 77. Finally, count on the remaining 5 from the 35. People
sometimes use equal signs instead of arrows to indicate the
accumulating total, but that usage is not correct.

G. 47+35 40+30 70 77, 78, 79, 80, 81,

82

In method H, you adjust numbers to make them easier to add.

Increase the 47 by 3 to 50. To balance the increase, decrease the 35 by
3 to 32. Then add 50 to 32.

H. 47+35 = 50 + 32 = 82
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Subtraction

In method A shown here, you change top numbers to make them

larger than bottom numbers. Then you can easily subtract all the
bottom numbers from the top numbers. In the example shown, the
bottom number in the ones' column, 7, cannot be subtracted from the
top number, 3. So you take one 10 from the top number in the tens'
column and add it to the ones' position in that number. This addition
changes the number in the ones' position from 3 to 13. In the
hundreds' column, you cannot subtract 8 hundreds from 4 hundreds.
So you make the 4 hundreds bigger by adding to it one of the
thousands, or 10 hundreds, to make 14 hundreds.

Method A can be used in two ways. In the easier way, you adjust
top numbers so that every top number is larger than the number below
it. Then you do all the subtraction. You can work from left to right or
from right to left. In a more difficult technique, you work one column at
a time, starting at the right. You adjust the top number if necessary,
then subtract. Schools in the United States commonly teach this
technique.

A comparison of subtraction method A and addition method D

shows how addition and subtraction are opposite procedures. When
doing addition, you can get too many digits in one position and
therefore have to add one 10 of the quantity corresponding to that
position to the place to the left. When doing subtraction, if you do not
have a large enough number from which to subtract, you have to take
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one 10 of the quantity corresponding to that position from the place to

the left.

Method B is similar to method A, but when you take 10 from the

left position, you write it as 10. There are two ways to use method B. In
the example shown, if you split the 7 in the ones' column into 3 and 4,
you can easily subtract 3 from the 3 to get 0. Then you can subtract
the 4 from the 10, which leaves 6. Another approach is to take the
entire bottom number from the 10: 10 - 7 = 3. Then you add the
difference from that subtraction to the top number: 3 + 3 = 6. Method
B comes from Korea.

Method C uses equal additions. You add the same amount to the
top and bottom numbers so the difference between them stays the
same. Schools in Latin America and many European countries teach
method C. However, students in some countries do not write the 1's in
the top number.

In this method, you add 10 ones to the ones' position in the top
number to make 13. Then you subtract 7 from 13 to get 6. To balance
the 10 ones that you added, you add one 10 to the bottom number in
the tens' column. Write a 1 representing the 10 beside the 4 in the
tens' position. In the tens' column, first subtract 4 from 8: 8 - 4 = 4.
Then subtract the 1: 4 - 1 = 3. In the hundreds' column, add 10
hundreds to the 4 hundreds in the top number to get 14 hundreds.
Then add 1 thousand to the 2 thousands in the thousands' column.
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Methods D and E involve working with numbers that have the

same value positions. In method D, you subtract the 200 of the 278
from the 600 of the 634 to get 400. Then, you subtract the remaining
78 from 400 to get 322. Finally, you add to the 322 the 34 left over
from the 634 for an answer of 356.

Method E is similar to addition method H. You adjust the

numbers to make them easier to use. Adding the same amount to both
numbers does not change the difference between them. By adding 2 to
both numbers, you get 636 and 280. The number 280 is easier to work
with than 278. To count up from 280 to 636, you first count 20 to get to
300, then 300 to get to 600, and then 36 to get to 636. Then add the
numbers 20, 300, and 36 for the total difference.
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Multiplication

You can multiply by adding repeated copies of a number. Method

A requires only that you multiply by 10, 100, or 1,000, and so on, and
then add the resulting multiples. Multiplying by 10 moves a number
one value position to the left. So 10 times 486 is 4,860. Multiplying by
100 moves each number two-value place to the left. So 100 times 486
is 48,600. So 324 x 486 is just four copies of 486, two copies of 4,860,
and three copies of 48,600. Add all of these copies together to find the
final answer, called the product.

In method B, you multiply each digit in the top number, called

the multiplicand, by each digit in the bottom number, called the
multiplier. In this example, 486 is the multiplicand and 324 is the
multiplier.
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Method C is a shortcut of method B in which you multiply the

entire multiplicand by each number in the multiplier. You begin on the
right. In the example shown, first multiply 486 by 4. Then multiply 486
by the number in the tens' position in the multiplier: 20 x 486. And
then multiply 486 by the number in the hundreds' position in the
multiplier: 300 x 486. Schools in the United States teach method C.

Egyptians used method D more than 2,000 years ago. To use

this doubling method, sketch a table with two columns. In the right
column, write the multiplicand on top, double it, and write the doubled
figure below it. Double this second number and write it as the third
number in the column. In the left column, write 1 on top, double it to 2,
and write the 2 below the 1. Then double the 2 to 4 and write the 4
below the 2. Continue in this manner until the next number you would
write in the left column is bigger than the multiplier.
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Then, choose the numbers in the left column that add up to the
multiplier. Finally, add the corresponding values from the right column.
For example, to multiply 486 by 324, add the values for 256, 64, and 4
because 256 + 64 + 4 = 324. The result is the following: 124,416 +
31,104 + 1,944 = 157,464.

Method E has been used in Arab nations, China, India, Japan,

and Western Europe. Today this is called a Lattice Method. First, draw a
rectangle and divide it into rows and columns. Divide each resulting
square by a diagonal line running from top right to bottom left. Write
the multiplicand, 486, across the top, and the multiplier, 324, down the
right side. Write the product of each row and column in the square for
that row and column. Place the tens part of the product in the top
triangle and the ones part in the bottom triangle.

Then add from right to left. Begin by writing below the square
the number in the lower right triangle-in this case, a 4. Then, add the
numbers in the diagonally arranged group of triangles that are above
and to the left-in the example, the three 2's. You continue in this
manner. If a sum has two digits, write the tens' digit above the top
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triangle of the next group. Include that digit when you calculate the
sum for that next group.

In the example, the shaded 2 + 2 + 2 = 6 consists of the first

group of triangles and its sum. The shaded 2 + 1 + 4 + 1 + 8 + 1 = 7
consists of the tens' digit from the second group (the 2), the numbers
in the entire third group (the 1, 4, 1, 8, and 1), and the ones' digit of
the sum of those six numbers (the 7). The answer to the problem runs
from the square's top left side to its bottom right.

Method F shows the mental technique of multiplication, two to

three digit numbers multiplied by 2-digit number multiplier. See mental
technique handbook.

Division

Method A shows the basic method of division. In this method,

you take away copies of the divisor (the number by which you are
dividing) in multiples of 1, 10, 100, and so on. You continue taking
away copies until you use up the dividend (the number you are
dividing) and therefore cannot take away any more copies. The answer
is called the quotient. There is also usually an amount left over called
the remainder. Method A for division is the opposite of method A for
multiplication.
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Method B resembles division method A, but you take away more

than one set of each multiple at a time. You do not need to take away

all the sets of a given size in the first try. In the example shown, 3 sets

of 100 copies of the divisor could have been taken away in the first try.

But actually, 2 sets of 100 copies, then 1 set of 100 copies, were taken

away.

In method C, you must take away all the sets of a given size in
the first try. In the example, you must begin by taking away 3 sets of
100 copies of the divisor. Schools in the United States usually teach
method C.
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Method D is an abbreviation of method C. It comes from

Argentina and other Latin American countries. Write the divisor on the
right, the dividend on the left, and the quotient below the divisor. When
you subtract from the dividend, write down only the answer to that
subtraction.

Method E became widespread in Europe in the 1400's. It

originated in India, where the calculations were written in sand.
Method E resembles method C, except that you write the results of
subtraction above the dividend instead of below. This method is shown
in three steps so you can see how it works. The work for each step is
shaded. Each number is scratched out as it is used.
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In the first step, multiply 486 by 3. Write the first part of the
quotient-3-to the right and the answer-1,458-below the dividend. Then
subtract 1,458 from 1,574. Work from left to right (5 - 4 = 1 and 7 - 5 =
2), writing the remainder above the dividend. To make a subtraction in
the hundreds' column, you need to change the thousands' column.
Take 1 from the 2, crossing out the 2 and writing the resulting 1 above
it. The 1 that you took away from the thousands' column becomes a 10
in the hundreds' column. Mentally add the 10 to the 4 in the hundreds'
column, then subtract 8 from 14.

Reference:
Contributor: Karen Connors Fuson, Ph.D., Professor of Education,
Northwestern University. (2004 World Book (Deluxe))