Numerus

About Numerus

Numerus (the Latin for “number”) improves your reading comprehension of foreign language numbers by showing random numbers in user-chosen formats, lengths, time intervals and fonts. The object is to say or think the displayed number in whichever foreign language you are learning, before the next number is displayed.

Numerus is like flash cards, but with easily adjustable difficulty levels to promote your skill growth and enjoyment. It’s intended for those many people who have learned their foreign language numbers but are not yet quick enough in recognizing them.

Download Numerus today and conquer foreign language number reading comprehension!

Why use Numerus?
Learning to quickly recognize and say written numbers is a challenging part of language learning. The numbers are seldom spelled out and sometimes numbers don’t ‘map’ exactly to those in your mother tongue. For example, the number ninety-nine would in German be “nine and ninety” (neunundneunzig), while in French it would be “four twenty nineteen” (quatre-vingt-dix-neuf). These different ways of expressing numbers cause pain for learners.

Numerus can help ease that pain.

How to use Numerus
The app starts gently with a clear readable font, small numbers, and plenty of time to say each number. When you find this easy, increase the challenge slightly by, for example, reducing the interval by one second, changing the font, or changing the number format.

If you find yourself anxiously struggling, reduce the challenge slightly by, for example, increasing the time between numbers or switching the number format from four digits to three.

The target difficulty level should be not so easy that you’re bored, but not so hard that you’re anxious. If you feel just slightly stressed, you’re doing it right. Ideally you should aim for that zone in which the challenge is at the limit of your current ability. This is called being in the “flow channel” (ref. 1). In this way number drills can be an enjoyable experience for you.

You have a choice of twelve fonts, ten speeds, and thirteen number ranges and formats, including clock time and telephone numbers. The app will run in either English or French, depending on your device's settings.

Planned features: translation of the app into additional languages, more fonts, font previews, more number formats. As there’s currently no scoring, some means of progress tracking might be added.

Feel free to let us know what features you would like to have! We’d also love to know what numbers are especially difficult in languages you are familiar with.


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references:
1 Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly. “Finding Flow: the Psychology of Engagement with Everyday Life”. Basic Books, 2008.