Once upon a time, there was a teacher who thought they had a clever math question to stump their student, Johnny. Little did the teacher know, they were about to learn a lesson themselves.

The teacher presented the question confidently, “If I gave you 2 cats and another 2 cats and another 2, how many would you have?”

Without skipping a beat, Johnny replied with a mischievous grin on his face, “Seven.”

The teacher was surprised and decided to rephrase the question, thinking Johnny misunderstood. “No, listen carefully… If I gave you two cats, and another two cats and another two, how many would you have?”

Johnny remained steadfast in his response, “Seven.”

Puzzled, the teacher attempted a different approach, using a relatable item. “Let me put it to you differently. If I gave you two apples, and another two apples and another two, how many would you have?”

This time, Johnny confidently answered, “Six.”

The teacher finally thought they were getting through to Johnny. But their hopes were short-lived.

With a mischievous glint in his eye, Johnny responded yet again when presented with the original cat question. “Seven!”

The teacher’s bewilderment grew. “Johnny, where in the world do you get seven from?!”

Without skipping a beat, Johnny delivered the punchline, “Because I’ve already got a cat!”

The classroom erupted in laughter. The clever student had turned the tables on the teacher, teaching them a valuable lesson about assuming and preconceived notions.

And from that day forward, the teacher learned to approach questions with an open mind, ready to embrace unexpected answers.