@ShadSterling
Right. So yes, bits are an abstraction too in the schema of my OP. And at any level of abstraction, I’d want students to be comfortable:
(1) learning how to work within the abstraction (binary arithmetic, in this case),
(2) moving down a level, even if it means learning the unfamiliar (logic gates or EE or whatever), and
(3) moving up a level, even if it means giving up the familiar (because it’s now hidden).
Specific change, but there’s an underlying mindset there.