The New Elementary Arithmetic

The New Elementary Arithmetic by John Williston Cook and Miss N. Cropsey is a comprehensive nineteenth?century arithmetic textbook designed for primary and early secondary education. The book presents three years’ worth of number work organized into two main parts: Part I covers foundational number concepts from twenty through one hundred, with extensive worked examples, oral and written exercises, and guided problem solving. It emphasizes mental picturing, real-world applications, and graded drills rather than abstract theory. Chapter content includes reading and writing numbers, operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division), fractions, decimals, U.S. money, measurement (long, liquid, dry, and board measures), time, area and volume, and percent. The volume also includes sections on notation, Roman numerals, and a vigorous emphasis on practical arithmetic for everyday business transactions. The Preface and Suggestions stress a pedagogy oriented toward thinking rather than mere calculation, aiming to cultivate methodical reasoning and accurate numerical use in students’ daily lives. The book’s clear progression and plentiful exercises made it a widely used resource in American classrooms at the turn of the century.