I’ve seen two offspring go through school, and of course, I did it myself. There are some really neat things that schools teach kids, but did you ever stop and think why they do X, Y, and Z?
Did you ever wonder why, early in their first year of primary school, children are asked to bring in a teddy bear or a favourite toy? Then they come home the next day and tell you they spent the afternoon measuring things with them.
What was actually going on? Was the “why” ever explained to the children, or to you?
The Chaos of a World Without Standards
Stop and think about where we would all be if we didn’t have a universal form of measurement. (Granted, the world doesn’t quite have it completely sorted—American gallons are still shockingly smaller than UK gallons!) But on the whole, if someone tells you something is a foot or a metre long, most people can visualise it. Measuring a room in metres lets you know that when you go to order your carpet, the shop’s metres will match yours.
Imagine if that wasn’t the case. We would be right back to the chaotic days of measuring by physical feet, cubits, or hands—where everyone’s version is completely different.
Solving the Riddle
So, the children measure the height of the classroom doors and the lengths of the tables in “teddy bears”. Naturally, they all end up with totally different numbers. It is great fun, but does anyone actually tell them why that discrepancy matters? I am not entirely sure anyone told my kids.
The underlying lesson is one of the most vital concepts in science, and it’s crucial to know from an early age: you will always get different answers for the same object unless you all agree to measure against the exact same point of reference.
Different teddy bears equal different teddy numbers for the exact same door. It’s a brilliant piece of teaching. Let’s just hope it comes complete with the explanation, because I am not sure the average five-year-old will work out the philosophy behind it unaided. But just in case your own little ones ever ask—now you have the answer!