LinuxSA Mailing list archives

  From: Michael Firkins <michael@home.lyppard.com.au>
  To  : idavid@smug.adelaide.edu.au
  Date: Mon, 3 Jan 2000 23:30:23 +1030

Re: Children's counting

Hi.

Nah, you've just caused irreparable psychological damage to a five year old! He will probably turn into a mass-murderer or something. If you ask a child to count to ten, and the ability and willingness is there, the child will count to ten regardless of what the adult may be thinking about the second ten or the real starting date of an absurdly arbitary millenium. To tell the child to stop at nine is to change the instructions - ten doesn't occur until that last little pinky is touched.

The first number (for the child, anyway) in the second ten, 'eleven' occurs when the first finger is touched for the second time. (unless your child counts a 'zero' finger, but I havent seen any children doing that) 

Maybe we should ask the kids when the millenium clicks over?

Happy new year! :)

Michael

The only benefit in this whole millenium debate is that we get TWO parties!

On Mon, 3 Jan 2000 19:15:34 +1030 (CST), David Drury <idavid@smug.adelaide.edu.au> wrote:
>
> Hi,
>
>> >Hold up your hands, fingers out, and ask a five year old child to count to
>> >ten.  One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ...  Stop!  Ten
>> >is the first number in the *second* ten.  The first ten only has nine
>> >numbers.
>
> As Groucho Marx said " Its so simple a child of five could understand
> it. Bring me a child of five !"
>
> cya
>