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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]

I wasn't there either, but PP, your answer doesn't add anything to the numerical answer.  I do think it's a silly question.  The equation IS the sentence.  I feel like this approach to math is geared at (and maybe designed by) math-phobics.  Why do you need to put it into words?  Are pluses and equal signs so scary?  We know what they mean.  Turning the "plus" into an "and" and the equals sign into an "is" doesn't increase understanding.[/quote]

It does, though.

Yes, the equation is the sentence in math. But it is possible to get 1/3 + 1/3 = 2/3 by memorizing the rule that when you add fractions, you're supposed to add the top numbers and leave the bottom numbers alone. No understanding that plus = and or that equals = is required. And then you get stuck when you have to add 1/3 + 1/4.

I was in advanced math and got straight As, and if you had asked me in junior high why you solve a story problem like "Anita had 12 apples, and she ate half of them. How many apples did she eat?" by writing 1/2 x 12 = 6, I wouldn't have been able to answer. All I'd done is memorize the rule "if you see [a fraction] of [a number], you write fraction x number".[/quote]

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