teaching 3rd graders binary using the socratic method

[vqc]

im not sure how interesting this will be for everyone but i found this website where a teacher teaches 3rd graders binary by only asking questions.

its kinda nifty
http://www.garlikov.com/Soc_Meth.html

[Al Golagnic]

The title of this thread sounds like the title of an article at McSweeney's.

I didn't read all the teacher's (or guest in the classroom's) commentary, but I did read the questions and answers. Is it adhering to the Socratic method to call "Even easier, right, because you just have to multiply or add zeroes and ones, which is easy, right?" a question? It's leading, telling them something, then tacking on a "right?" at the end.

Best part about it was the kids picking it up. Such young minds, open to new things. It's exciting.

[thenonsequitur]

I didn't read all the teacher's (or guest in the classroom's) commentary, but I did read the questions and answers. Is it adhering to the Socratic method to call "Even easier, right, because you just have to multiply or add zeroes and ones, which is easy, right?" a question? It's leading, telling them something, then tacking on a "right?" at the end.

The commentary at the end covered this.

It is crucial to understand the difference between "logically" leading questions and "psychologically" leading questions. Logically leading questions require understanding of the concepts and principles involved in order to be answered correctly; psychologically leading questions can be answered by students' keying in on clues other than the logic of the content.
...
For the Socratic method to work as a teaching tool and not just as a magic trick to get kids to give right answers with no real understanding, it is crucial that the important questions in the sequence must be logically leading rather than psychologically leading.

He explained that not every step has to be logically leading, only the ones that are really necessary to the core of understanding the logical path. Psychologically leading questions are fine if they are just getting to that path faster.

Also, in the example you gave he was just making a joke in the form of a question--not really asking a question.