- Abacus is a tool and a method; mental maths is the skill of calculating in your head. Most abacus programmes aim to end in mental calculation.
- Abacus often suits children who learn by seeing and touching. Mental strategies often suit children who like patterns and reasoning. Many children benefit from both.
- Short, regular practice matters more than which route you pick.
What is abacus learning?
Children move beads along rods. Each rod stands for a place value: ones, tens, hundreds and so on. On the common Japanese-style abacus, the soroban, each rod has one bead worth five and four beads worth one each.
Children learn a fixed set of finger movements for adding and subtracting. With regular practice, many start to picture the abacus in their mind and move “imaginary beads” to calculate. This is often called mental abacus, or anzan. New to the method? Start with our step-by-step guide on how to use an abacus, or read more about the benefits of abacus for kids.
What is mental maths?
Mental maths means calculating in your head, with no tool at all. Instead of beads, children use number sense: small, flexible tricks that make sums easier.
How are they connected?
They are not opposites. Abacus is one route to strong mental calculation; mental strategies are another. Here is how they compare.
| Abacus | Mental maths | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A bead tool and a step-by-step method | Strategies for calculating in your head |
| How it works | Set finger movements, later pictured in the mind | Number facts and flexible strategies |
| Typical start | Often from about age 5 | Any age |
| What it builds | Speed, concentration, visual memory | Number sense, reasoning, flexibility |
| What you need | An abacus, usually a class or teacher | Nothing at all |
Which suits your child?
- likes hands-on, visual learning
- enjoys routine and repetition
- has time for regular classes or practice
- would benefit from a structured programme
- enjoys puzzles and patterns
- wants to start straight away, with no equipment
- is older and already confident with numbers
- likes to understand why a method works
You don’t have to choose forever. Many abacus learners use mental strategies at school, and children who start with mental maths can pick up an abacus later.
How to practise at home
Whichever route you choose, the same habits help:
- Little and often. 10–15 minutes a day beats an hour once a week.
- Accuracy first, then speed. Speed grows on its own once answers are reliable.
- Mix it up. Short timed rounds, then slower problem-solving.
- Talk it through. Ask “how did you work that out?” and listen.
- Celebrate personal bests, not comparisons with other children.
Where competitions fit in
A friendly competition gives practice a goal and a date to aim for. In the Abacus World Championship 2027 · Global Mental Maths Competition, children can compete with an abacus or purely in their head. Every question can be solved mentally, and abacus learners may use one in rounds marked “Abacus or Mental”.