ARITHMETIC GAME FROM CHILDHOOD
07/21/13
by Larry Delano Coleman
While in James Milton Turner Elementary School near St.Louis, Missouri, in the early 1960's, my 3 younger siblings and I used to play an arithmetic game among ourselves at home. It had no name that I can now recall. But you doubled the sum of preceding sums successively starting with number 1.
Thus, you had 1 and 1 is 2. 2 and 2 is 4. 4 and 4 is 8. 8 and 8 is 16. 16 and 16 is 32. 32 and 32 is 64. 64 and 64 is 128. 128 and 128 is 256. 256 and 256 is 512. 512 and 512 is 1024. 1024 and 1024 is 2048.
Fun came from memorizing (mastering) the formulation and the answers, in the doubling sequence, 2, with accuracy and rapidity! You had to think fast or another sibling would beat you to the answer!
One day, when I was in the 5th or 6th grade, another teacher brought my brother Harold to our classroom all excited about this math whiz in her class. Harold was either in the 1st or 2nd grade at that time. She told Harold then to recite the above logarithm. His speed and accuracy brought gasps of amazement from my classmates. How could one so young, and so small, be so good in math, they wondered?
After, the gasps had subsided, I told them Harold was my little brother and that his recitation was a math game that we played at home each day. To prove it, I asked him to answer some odd-numbered problems (outside of that math sequence). Of course, he could not do it, not having been previously exposed to those odd numbers, nor having practiced that method of addition, outside the logarithm.
His teacher and my little brother both seemed somewhat crestfallen, by my disclosure. And, even now, to this day, I kick myself for having let the cat out of the bag, as older siblings are prone to do, naively.
I share this anecdote with you, so you can share this arithmetic game with elementary school children in your lives. It will boost their confidence and self-esteem and will garner honors from their teachers.
Our doubling game used the even number, 2, as our base. But, doubling 3, 4, 5's etc. sequentially might also be fun and challenging! Math games are myriad.
Sunday, July 21, 2013
arithmetic game from childhood
ARITHMETIC GAME FROM CHILDHOOD
07/21/13
by Larry Delano Coleman
While in James Milton Turner Elementary School near St.Louis, Missouri, in the early 1960's, my 3 younger siblings and I used to play an arithmetic game among ourselves at home. It had no name that I can now recall. But you doubled the sum of preceding sums successively starting with number 1.
Thus, you had 1 and 1 is 2. 2 and 2 is 4. 4 and 4 is 8. 8 and 8 is 16. 16 and 16 is 32. 32 and 32 is 64. 64 and 64 is 128. 128 and 128 is 256. 256 and 256 is 512. 512 and 512 is 1024. 1024 and 1024 is 2048.
Fun came from memorizing (mastering) the formulation and the answers, in the doubling sequence, 2, with accuracy and rapidity! You had to think fast or another sibling would beat you to the answer!
One day, when I was in the 5th or 6th grade, another teacher brought my brother Harold to our classroom all excited about this math whiz in her class. Harold was either in the 1st or 2nd grade at that time. She told Harold then to recite the above logarithm. His speed and accuracy brought gasps of amazement from my classmates. How could one so young, and so small, be so good in math, they wondered?
After, the gasps had subsided, I told them Harold was my little brother and that his recitation was a math game that we played at home each day. To prove it, I asked him to answer some odd-numbered problems (outside of that math sequence). Of course, he could not do it, not having been previously exposed to those odd numbers, nor having practiced that method of addition, outside the logarithm.
His teacher and my little brother both seemed somewhat crestfallen, by my disclosure. And, even now, to this day, I kick myself for having let the cat out of the bag, as older siblings are prone to do, naively.
I share this anecdote with you, so you can share this arithmetic game with elementary school children in your lives. It will boost their confidence and self-esteem and will garner honors from their teachers.
Our doubling game used the even number, 2, as our base. But, doubling 3, 4, 5's etc. sequentially might also be fun and challenging! Math games are myriad.
