Students who have learned their first lessons well are expected to advance into more complex concepts, but it is not always an easy path for each one. Some of them will do well when it comes to mastering the basics, but they will falter when they are expected to apply the information. Helping them to progress is a difficult undertaking for educators, so it pays for them to ensure students have a good jumping off point before they are given more difficult work.
Mathematics is an area where many students begin learning by rote, but they must be able to understand complex concepts before they graduate from school. Many small children learn how to count up to ten before they enter school, and most of them have learned how to do it by memorizing simple songs. Even their first lessons in this subject are easy, and many of them are taught to add and subtract through familiar examples.
Mastering complex concepts in this area of learning begins when children are taught to add, and educators often use fruits to help them. They are given two apples, and then two more are added before they are asked for the total. The answer of four is simple enough for most students, but mixing this with other fruits is a complex concept that might be difficult for many. Adding two oranges to two apples might be the answer four, but it could also be the answer of two and two.
There are not always easy ways to learn how to apply the basics of any subject to advanced study, and it can be difficult to teach them. Educators are well aware of the work it will take, and they are not always able to make it fun or easy for students. When it comes to learning advanced concepts, adding oranges to apples is just the start.
