Last month, while waiting for hamburgers at a BurgerKing in Lakewood, California, the kindergartner I had just picked up from school started testing me on my math skills. An approximation of our conversation has been published on the blog Long Beach Child Care.
Kindergartner to a grownup: “How much is a hundred plus a hundred plus a million plus a hundred plus a million.”
Grownup, after using his hands to keep track: “Two million, three hundred.”
Kindergartner: “How did you do that?”
Grownup: “I used my hands.”
Kindergartner: “This time, don’t use your hands. How much is a million plus a million plus a hundred plus a million plus a hundred plus a hundred?”
Grownup makes an estimate.
Kindergarner: “How did you do that?”
Grownup: “I used my head.”
Kindergartner: “This time, don’t use your head.”
