Saturday, February 7, 2009

How Many Apples Can You Count?

Posted by Neill Abayon

A teacher teaching math to seven-year-old Arnav asked him, "If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?” Within a few seconds Arnav replied confidently, "Four!"

The dismayed teacher was expecting an effortless correct answer (three). She was disappointed. "Maybe the child did not listen properly," she thought. She repeated, "Arnav, listen carefully. If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?"

Arnav had seen the disappointment on his teacher's face. He calculated again on his fingers. But within him he was also searching for the answer that will make the teacher happy. His search for the answer was not for the correct one, but the one that will make his teacher happy. This time hesitatingly he replied, "Four ..."

Read the full article here.






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