Section

Randy told us of a job interview where the employer asked if Randy knew how many square feet are in a mile.  Keilie piped up, "I know that one!  'Five Tomatoes.'  5- To (2)- m(8)- ohs(0).  5280."  Randy said he was as impressed with her knowing that fun math help as the employer had been with Randy when he gave him the correct answer all those years ago. 

Randy then said the employer had asked if he knew how much land was in a section.  I hadn't even heard of "section" as a measuring tool before.  His next question was put to us: "640 acres is a section?  How many acres is a quarter section?"  As I was considering my own math to have the answer (knowing not to say it out loud since this was more for the kids to use their minds, although I was learning at the same time) Tyson almost immediately yelled out the answer.  Randy asked him how he got the answer so quickly.

"8 times 8 is 64.  Two 8's is 16.  Add a zero.  1/4 of 640 is 160."  

I'm not making it up to make Tyson's skills more impressive when I say I hadn't deduced the answer before he did.  His mind just works so quickly doing his own kind of math.  No one taught him how to do that, in that way, he just knew it, like everything else mathematic in that boy's life.  Maybe this little exercise has shown me that I need to hire a tutor for his math education this homeschool school year...