“Plus” Work for “Plus” Pupils

Abstract

One plus one equals “10” for the members of a special arithmetic class at the University School, College of Education, Norman, Oklahoma. Of course, the members of this class were working with a number system of base two, commonly referred to as the binary system. Students also readily stated that three plus three equals “12” if the base is four. Changing the base number was not only fascinating to these highly talented fifth and sixth grade youngsters, but also provided a launching platform for the development of complicated formulas (patterns to them) which are normally developed in a second year high-school algebra course.