increasing

i have just finished a rib pattern knit1 purl1 with 37 stitches, im now on the wrong side and i need to increase 4 stitches evenly across the row can you tell me what number stitches i should increase on and do i increase by knitting into a stitch and then knitting into the back of it , thanks

There are knitting calculators that you can use like this one for knitting in rows (rather than in rounds).
http://www.anycalculator.com/knittingcalculator.html
It uses a M1 for the increases which means picking up the strand between sts rather than working in a stitch like the knit front and back (kfb).

If your pattern is changing from rib to a different stitch pattern (say for the body of a hat or sweater), then you don’t have to be exactly precise about these increases. They just have to be approximately evenly distributed and not bunched in one place.

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thank you for your help , it came in useful, i have another problem not sure if you can help, i start off with 41 stitches the pattern is 6 rows long , i am supposed to end up with 45 stitches, i have got to knit 12 rows and on the fifth row i have to make 1 at each end of the row ,at the same time i have to incrase 1 at each end of the 8th row, i knitted the first 6 making 1 at each end of the 5th row then i increased 1 at each end on the second row of my next set of 6 rows and then made 1 at each end of the 5th row , what am i doing wrong as i should have 45 stitches and keep ending up with 47 thank you,

Can you quote the instructions for the increases exactly?

keeping continuity of pattern as set work 12 rows inc 1 st at each end of the 8th row working inc sts in st-st

So the make one at each end of the 5th row is part of the 6-row pattern? What is the name of your pattern?
I see your problem with the increase at each end of the two 5th rows with the additional increases on the 8th row. Are there any decreases in the 6-row pattern?

its a photocopy from ebay, its a sirdar

If there are no decreases in the 6-row pattern to compensate for the increases built into row 5 then work the 12 rows increasing on the two row 5s only. Ignore the increases on row 8.
You might read ahead in the pattern to make sure the next stitch count makes sense. It’s possible that the 45sts is incorrect and it should be 47sts.
The reason I ask about the pattern name (or the Sirdar number) is that it sometimes helps to see a photo of the pattern and to look for online errata. You can check that yourself.