# Attention spans for math and stories

DevFeed: [Attention spans for math and stories](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/attention-spans-for-math-and-stories-40427.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://www.jeremykun.com/2019/03/26/attention-spans-for-math-and-stories/>)

Published: 2024-11-15T16:28:26Z

Content type: opinion

Language: en

Sources: [Jeremy Kun](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/jeremy-kun.md>)

Topics: [Math and Logic](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/math-and-logic.md>), [math](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/math.md>)

Tags: [children](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/children.md>), [essays](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/essays.md>), [games](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/games.md>), [math](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/math.md>), [storytelling](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/storytelling.md>)

## AI overview

This essay argues that storytelling can motivate young children to engage with abstract mathematical reasoning. It contrasts children's enjoyment of surprising patterns and stories with the persistence needed to explore deeper mathematical questions.

## Source excerpt

Editor's note: This essay was originally published in 2019. I have made minor edits in this republishing. There was a MathOverflow thread about mathematically interesting games for 5-6 year olds. A lot of the discussion revolved around how young age 5 really is, and how we should temper expectations because we don't really remember what it's like to be 5. In response to an enormous answer by Alexander Chervov, user LSpice quipped, "'Daddy, daddy, let's play another in the infinite indexed family of perfect-information draw-free cheap-to-construct two-player games!