Count on Addition or Subtraction -- Am I wrong here?

[lev888]

Is the discussion about multiplication possibly why the teacher is nitpicking about showing work on this question?

What's funny is they seem to think my son memorizes everything. But if you ask him a similar multiplication problem, this is one of the strategies he uses. He's never done flashcards, but his mental math, even with multiplying double digit numbers beyond 12X12, is very strong. He has learned from books by Greg Tang and Danica McKellar, which I thought were in keeping with what would be taught in school.

If the problem says draw a picture, then the student should draw a picture. Don't know what penalty is fair for this infraction, but I wouldn't call it nitpicking. What I would like to nitpick about is calling an expression an equation. What's up with that? I'm sure some dictionaries are ok with that, but I thought this distinction has been settled in math circles...