Re:Can 1/3 and 1/3 = 2/6? It seemed so
by karatestomp on Tuesday May 26, 2020 @02:10PM
(#23314475)
My observation of points at which even very smart people fall off the "math train" k-12:
- Fractions
- Factoring
So yeah, I'd say great care is warranted in teaching kids fractions. Screw that up and there's a good chance you've lost them for life.
> My concern is about leading the other 19+ kids astray with a confusing example before they're ready for it.
Except that the kids were all agreeing with her. Whether she did made that statement or not, they still believed that made sense.
I agree with you about the solution from mnsc, that was a good way to skip that without confusion.
Ignoring it does feel wrong, but I don't know that it is. There's only so much time in a class period, etc.
That said, I really liked where mnsc went with it: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23312266