Anzan is the aim of practicing with the soroban.  In Anzan you develop a mental soroban which you use to calculate.

 

Anzan should be started as soon as the basics are learned.  For example when addition and subtraction is mastered, then Anzan practice should be started.

 

A card with a basic soroban outline is used to practice anzan.

 

METHOD DICTATION

 

Use NumDict to give single numbers to add.

Begin with single digit numbers and 3 or four to add.

Use the Soroban card to move your fingers to move the beads in your brain.

In this way you can work out the answer.

 

METHOD PAPER

 

Place the card below the column of numbers.

As above use the correct fingers to manipulate the beads in the brain.

Aim to develop the mental picture of the soroban and link this to the movement of the fingers.

The picture below shows a little Japanese girl doing the paper method.

METHOD FLASH ANZAN

 

In this method numbers are flashed onto a computer screen and the calculation is done on the anzan card.

Flash anzan link here.

Again using the fingers as they would be used on a physical soroban.

This little girl is doing flash anzan with 3 digit numbers.

When calculation by anzan becomes easy, the card is not used any more, but the fingers still move as though they were using a physical soroban.  The calculation is done by picturing the soroban in the brain.