Math & Counting

Best Back-to-School Books 2019 Part Three – A Roundup

 

BEST BACK-TO-SCHOOL BOOKS 2019

∼ A ROUNDUP ∼

PART THREE

 

Back-to-school free clipart of backpack

 

 

The Pigeon HAS to Go to School! coverTHE PIGEON HAS TO GO TO SCHOOL!
Written and illustrated by Mo Willems
(Hyperion Books for Children; $16.99, Ages 4-7) 

When I was the target age for a book like The Pigeon HAS to Go to School!, if I scraped my knee or bumped my head, my dad would examine the injury and say, “Oh no. We’re going to have to amputate!” It worked every time, turning my tears to belly laughs. Similarly, in this most recent addition to the popular series kicked off by Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, Mo Willems tackles first day of school fears with Pigeon’s slightly subversive wit and my dad’s effective approach: identify the worst-case scenario and demonstrate how silly and ridiculous it is.

Pigeon hints he’s worried even before the title page, ordering the reader, “WAIT! Don’t read that title!” After all, why should Pigeon have to go to school? He already knows everything. Also, he’s not a morning person. And if he learns too much — his head might pop off! Looking and feeling very small on the page, he finally admits he’s scared. “The unknown stresses me out, dude.” What is he worried about? “Why does the alphabet have so many letters … Will FINGER PAINT stick to my feathers?” Or the one that really gets me: “What if the teacher doesn’t like pigeons?”

Like other books in the series, the illustrations are spare, with large blocks of pastel colors. All the words belong to Pigeon and are delivered in prominent speech bubbles in a large hand-lettered Courier-style font. There are opportunities for interaction; I can already picture my favorite two-year-old responding to Pigeon’s command, “Go on — ask me a question. Any question!” and then giggling proudly when the next page shows Pigeon is stumped. Pigeon eventually reasons out why school will be okay, but in a fun finish, he really feels it when he realizes how he’s going to get to school: a bright yellow … bus!

pigeonpresents.com

 

Take Your Pet to School Day coverTAKE YOUR PET TO SCHOOL DAY
Written by Linda Ashman
Illustrated by Suzanne Kaufman
(Random House BYR; $17.99, Ages 3-7)

“Enough!” says Mr. Paul. “It’s clear —

these animals should not be here.

Now, why would someone change this rule?

Pets do NOT belong in school!”

If the music teacher, the art teacher, the school librarian, and even the principal of Maple View School didn’t change the rule to allow pets in class, who did? Author Linda Ashman answers that question in Take Your Pet to School Day, but only after chronicling the rowdy behavior of the animal visitors. The lively, easy-to-read verse can be a fun way to start a conversation about why we need rules at school.

Suzanne Kaufman depicts both the human and animal populations at Maple View in colors that feel vibrant, soft, and warm at the same time. The illustrations are full of variety and detail. Kids will find children of every skin and hair color and enjoy inspecting their clothes in pastel solids and rainbow stripes, their high tops and cowboy boots and sneakers. The pets include the expected cat, dog, and bunny, as well as the unexpected: a turtle, a hedgehog, and even an entire ant farm. It’s an adventure just to find the hamster, who rolls somewhere new in its wheel on each page. I can’t recommend taking your pet horse to school, but I heartily recommend Take Your Pet to School Day.

 

I'm Trying to Love Math coverI’M TRYING TO LOVE MATH
Written and illustrated by Bethany Barton
(Viking Books for Young Readers; $17.99, Ages 4-8)

As someone who loves math and wants kids to love it, too, I approach I’m Trying to Love Math with caution. Is math going to get a bum rap in this book? The narrator starts off by saying, “If you ask me, math is not very lovable. I know I’m not alone here either. 4 in 10 Americans hate math.” Worried, I study the pie chart right beneath the dreaded “H” word. Sixty percent of the pie is a bright wash of green labeled “YAY MATH!” and adorned with hearts. Forty percent is lemon yellow with “BOO MATH!” above a broken heart. Meanwhile, an adorable purple alien pops up in the corner and asks, “Did you just use math to explain how much you don’t like it?”

What a relief! I can see we’re in good hands here. I’m Trying to Love Math provides a variety of awesome answers to the age-old question: “When will I ever use math in real life?” Baking cookies? Check. Making music? Check. Exploring Earth and other parts of the universe? Check and check. After fun illustrations of ice cream and ships and electric guitars and cash registers⁠—and a whole page of pi⁠—the narrator comes to the conclusion that “math is a part of so many things I already love … I guess I don’t need to try to love it at all. It turns out … I already do.” I recommend this book to all math lovers, especially the ones who think they are haters.

•Reviewed by Mary Malhotra
Share this:

Goodnight, Numbers by Danica McKellar

GOODNIGHT, NUMBERS
Written by Danica McKellar
Illustrated by Alicia Padrón
(Crown Books for Young Readers; $16.99, Ages 2-5)

 

Cover image of Danica McKellar's Goodnight Numbers

 

Math lover, author and mom of five, Lucy Ravitch, recently read Goodnight, Numbers with her family and today shares her thoughts on best-selling author, Danica McKellar’s latest book. Remember to also check out Lucy’s website, Kids Math Teacher, here.

McKellar’s newest book (it came out last week), provides a fun, hands-on approach to counting. This nod to Goodnight, Moon offers up multiple bedtime opportunities for your kids to count up to ten and learn their individual numbers. Each page presents the number both in written form, and numerically giving little ones the perfect way to practice tracing with their fingers.

Now find out more about Goodnight, Numbers in Lucy’s enlightening video, then read on.

As you go through the spreads and explore the scenes with your kids, they’ll discover several groupings of items. If not, point them out. Some are easy to spot while others can be more difficult. In fact, that’s actually a great way to keep slightly older kids interested. My four- and five-year-old kids enjoyed looking through Padrón’s illustrations to see if they could find ALL the grouped items. Did your kids notice the three sofa cushions in the video?  As you saw in the video, I do suggest this book for children ages 0-6, but only if you really want to introduce numbers early. Otherwise it is ideal for ages 2+. It would be such a super idea for Crown Books for Young Readers to make Goodnight, Numbers into a board book that would be durable enough to withstand the hours of engagement this book will surely have over its lifetime. Pick up a copy at your local independent bookstore today. Happy counting!

  • Reviewed by Lucy Ravitch
Share this:

Outdoor Math: Fun Activities for Every Season by Emma AdBåge

OUTDOOR MATH:
FUN ACTIVITIES FOR EVERY SEASON
Written and illustrated by Emma AdBåge
(Kids Can Press; $15.95, Ages 5-8)

 

Outdoor Math cover image

 

I am so glad I had the chance to read Outdoor Math and have only positive things to say about it. This delightfully illustrated book is super fun and packed with hands-on activities that focus on going outdoors and playing. The book starts off with an introduction to numbers 0-10 with real world examples, then there are numerous math activities for each season of the year, followed by a brief explanation and examples of plus and minus, then multiply and divide. There’s even some science that can be learned especially when engaging in the seasonal-themed activities.

 

Outdoor Math Pg 11
Outdoor Math: Fun Activities for Every Season, written and illustrated by Emma AdBåge, Kids Can Press ©2016.

 

The majority of the book is divided into the four seasons, each with five to seven outdoor math activities so the book provides year round entertainment and education. All of the activities listed looked interesting so of course I had to try a few. My daughter and I enjoyed bouncing a ball for a minute. She was so good at bouncing the ball it was hard to keep track, but we managed to count 135 bounces in one minute. Then we played Tic-Tac-Toe from the book’s Autumn section. We had such a good time playing with our placeholders–seedpods and bits of mulch. After three tied games, I was the lucky winner!

 

Outdoor Math Tic Tac Toe photo by L. Ravitch
Photograph of Outdoor Math inspired activity – Tic Tac Toe by Lucy Ravitch ©2016.

 

The counting and tossing outdoor activities are sure to be a hit with kids even as young as three years old. I felt the rest of the activities could work for almost any age. There are timed activities with counting, as well as activities with maps and shapes, and some games that require coordination. What I love about the book is how many of the activities have kids exercising while they’re doing a math skill. Outdoor Math: Fun Activities for Every Season gives great examples of educational play with simple rules for young kids.

 

Image of Outdoor Math Winter Math Activity Pg 17
Outdoor Math: Fun Activities for Every Season, written and illustrated by Emma AdBåge, Kids Can Press ©2016.

 

Although I live in sunny southern California where it’s summer almost all year long, the activities can be done anywhere. The book is a wonderful STEM resource because it’s easy to substitute objects depending on the time of year and where you live. For example, Pine Cone Math where you collect pine cones can be substituted with shells, rocks or toys instead. I feel confident recommending Outdoor Math as it’s a terrific book for kids and their parents/teachers/grandparents that’s certain to get everyone moving outside while doing math activities. It goes to show that math is all around us and almost any activity can be a math activity! Thank you Emma AdBåge for making a playful and hands-on book for kids.

After playing Outdoor Math, your kids might just find other ways to incorporate math into play too. I was surprised and happy to see my kids making designs from the objects we used. In fact, as you can see below, there is even math to be found in neat designs!

 

Image of Outdoor Math nature inspired design by L Ravitch
Photograph of Outdoor Math inspired activity – design from nature by Lucy Ravitch ©2016.

 

  • Reviewed by Lucy Ravtich
Share this:

Pete the Cat’s Got Class by James Dean

PETE THE CAT’S GOT CLASS
Written and illustrated by James Dean
(HarperCollins; $9.99, Ages 4-8)

 

Pete the Cat's Got Class by James Dean book cover

 

James Dean’s series continues with his latest book, Pete the Cat’s Got Class. Pete’s in school and loves math because of the way numbers “work together,” but his super smart friend, Tom, struggles to understand it. “Pete has an idea! He will help Tom become awesome at math. Helping is cool!”

Using race cars to demonstrate the concepts of addition and subtraction, Pete and Tom work together, building Tom’s math proficiency levels. When their teacher, Mr. G., suspects the two cool cats have copied from one another on a math test, they demonstrate how using race cars made learning fun.

This hardcover book comes with 12 flash cards, a fold-out poster, and stickers. To do Pete’s “Meow Math,” twelve number stickers are included along with addition, subtraction, and equal signs. You can also count blocks or race cars, or play with the Pete and friends stickers.

The flash cards feature numbers one through ten; the word is printed on one side and digit on the other. For example, the back of “Five” shows “5” and five surfboards. Two “Directions” cards explain that kids can either learn the sight words or use the cards to practice their math skills.

Dean’s bright, deadpan-funny illustrations are once again a mainstay. The story line is interwoven with basic addition and subtraction problems, presenting an element of education in Pete the Cat’s Got Class.

Find out about author illustrator, James Dean here.

 

  • Reviewed by Christine Van ZandtWriter, editor, and owner of Write for Success www.Write-for-Success.com@WFSediting, Christine@Write-for-Success.comCo-editor of and writer for SCBWI’s Kite Tales 

 

Share this:

Peg + Cat: The Pizza Problem by Jennifer Oxley and Billy Aronson

PEG + CAT: THE PIZZA PROBLEM
Written and illustrated by Jennifer Oxley and Billy Aronson
(Candlewick Entertainment; $12.99, Ages 3-7)

Peg and Cat: The Pizza Problem book cover

 

Peg + Cat: The Pizza Problem is another wonderful book from the creators of the popular educational PBS show, Peg + Cat! You don’t need to be familiar with Peg + Cat to enjoy this book because their characters shine through in the text and illustrations.

Peg and her cat open up Peg’s Pizza Place and are excited to serve the first customers when she gets an order for half a pizza among the orders of whole pizzas. At first she doesn’t know what half a pizza is, but luckily her friends come and help her realize that half a pizza is just one pizza cut down the middle, a semi-circle. Peg and Cat continue to fulfill new orders and provide entertainment for the customers, but then there is a dilemma! Peg gets four more orders and there’s only enough ingredients to make two and a half pizzas. Luckily, some of the orders were for half pizza pies, so she just might have enough to satisfy everyone.

Peg + Cat: The Pizza Problem is a terrific book for kids ages three through seven who will appreciate the bright and cheerful illustrations while learning helpful math concepts.  The story really had some good twists and turns, so much that it kept me engaged because I wasn’t sure what was going to happen next. I’m always happy to see math concepts being introduced and taught in real-to-life scenarios so kids can grasp the concepts easily. I also enjoyed the part where Peg got so stressed and had to be reminded to count down from five to one to calm down–an important lesson kids and adults both need.

Thank you Jennifer Oxley and Bill Aronson for your great work with Peg + Cat! We look forward to what other fun math related books you create.

Download an activity kit here.

Read Lucy’s review of Peg + Cat: The Race Car Problem here.

 

  • Reviewed by Lucy Ravitch

 

 

 

Share this:

A Roundup of TanTan Publishing Math Concepts Picture Books

A ROUNDUP OF TANTAN PUBLISHING
MATH CONCEPTS PICTURE BOOKS
featuring:

Could You Lift Up Your Bottom?,
Math at the Art Museum, and Ruffer’s Birthday Party

 

cover_Could-You-Please-Lift-up-Your-BottomThe first book in my roundup is called Could You Lift Up Your Bottom? by Hee-jung Chang with illustrations by Sung-hwa Chung. (TanTan Publishing; $16.95)
This book piqued my interest with its funny title, so I chose to make it my first read of the three math stories books I received. It has a relatively simple story of a frog whose hat has blown away and an elephant who sits on it. Stubborn and greedy Elephant will not move one inch, demanding different shaped food to eat. Frog fulfills the elephant’s requests in hopes that Elephant will lift up his bottom and get off of the hat. Love it! Eventually Frog is able to get Elephant to eat part of a honeycomb in a beehive. He then runs off due to the bees going after him. Could You Lift Up Your Bottom? reminded me a bit of Jon Klassen’s, I Want My Hat Back but teaching shapes along the way. The illustrations are unique and should appeal to kids because they can duplicate the simplistic art style. This book would be a good one to borrow from a library or have in a classroom. It has some nice information and suggested activities in the back of the book as well.

Understanding math concepts
Shape and space
Explaining the basic concept of space and three types of plane figures: triangle, quadrangle (tetragon), circle

 

cover_Math-at-the-Art-MuseumNext, I read Math at the Art Museum by Group Majoongmul and illustrated by Yun-ju Kim. (TanTan Publishing; $16.95)
This picture book is about a boy visiting an art museum with his family. The museum is having a special “Discover Math in Art” exhibit. Numerals, colors, shapes, direction, perspective, symmetry, and time are discussed as the family looks at different paintings from Seurat, Picasso, Degas, and more. I found this to be an enjoyable read that would engage children 4-9. In addition to liking the story, kids would like looking at the artwork presented in the book. Again, the publisher gave information in the back matter with suggestions for activities, but my favorite part was this quote, “Because math is not a field that deals only with numbers and calculations, it’s important to encourage children to look for and learn from mathematical concepts in unexpected places, including in artwork.” I wholeheartedly agree–we should be showing children that math is all around us and isn’t just a stand alone subject to be shared only in school. I’m happy to discover these kid-oriented math stories that strive to make math concepts accessible to all.

Understanding math concepts
Patterns and problem solving
Introducing mathematical concepts that are found in our surroundings to give children a fresh perspective on math: math in art

 

cover_Ruffers-Birthday-PartyMy final read from this group of books was Ruffer’s Birthday Party by Soon-jae Shin and illustrated by Min-jung Kim. The concepts emphasized are addition and subtraction, but a lot of other math concepts were shown in this book! I know kids will love it with the hands-on math examples. Ruffer is Nora’s pet dog and it’s his birthday in four days. They make invitations (to three friends and their pets–which they have to add up since they want to give an invitation to each of them), count down to the birthday party, bake a special cake (and since they are short on eggs they have to buy more at the store), they go to the store for last minute items (and there is a sale so we have to figure out the full price minus the discount and eventually figure out the total of the sale). Then, at the party Ruffer gets presents (and makes a chart to organize them–bones, stuffed animals, and balls) and everyone plays a ring toss game (in two teams with a few simple rules). It’s a fun read for kids who already love birthday books too!

Understanding math concepts
Numbers and operations
Dealing with operations with mathematical signs (÷, ×, +, -): addition and subtraction

 

  • Reviewed by Lucy Ravitch
Share this:

A Math and Counting Books Roundup

A MATH AND COUNTING BOOKS ROUNDUP
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC LITTLE KIDS OCEAN COUNTING,
TEN PIGS, & MICE MISCHIEF

 

Have fun counting and doing simple math with your children …

National Geographic Little Kids Ocean CountingNational_Geographic_Little_Kids_Ocean-Counting
Written by Janet Lawler
Photos by Brian Skerry
(National Geographic; $16.95, Ages 2-5)

If your young kids are into aquariums and learning about sea life then don’t miss this counting book. The beautiful underwater nature photographs match perfectly with the simple yet informative text. There is a little “Did you know?” section on each page with an interesting fact. Basic counting from 1-10 is so enjoyable with this book, plus in the back matter there’s a counting up and counting down page to review the numbers and the respective quantities with children.

 

 

Ten_Pigs_Bath-Adventure
Ten Pigs: An Epic Bath Adventure
by Derek Anderson
(Orchard Books/Scholastic; $16.99, Ages 3-5)

This humorous bath adventure from Little Quack illustrator Derek Anderson, will have your kids cracking up! One cute little pig is taking a bath with his rubber ducky when others start to barge into the tub. The text has great rhythm and the illustrations are both cute and extremely funny! I would highly recommend this book for young kids and I know the adults reading it will also find it amusing. You have to find out how the original bathing pig gets the tub all to himself again.

 

 

 

Mice Mischief: Math Facts in Action Mice_Mischief
Written by Caroline Stills
Illustrated by Judith Rossell
(Holiday House; $16.95, Ages 3-6)

Mice get into a lot of interesting and impressive mischief in this book! Mice Mischief offers a refreshing take on learning the different amounts that make 10. For example, as they get ready in the morning “8 mice cook. 2 mice juggle. 8+2=10.” It’s an engaging way to count and add with your little ones. The adorable illustrations complement the spare text perfectly. I hope they make a board book version since I think this book would be great for babies all the way up age 6.

 

 

  • Reviewed by Lucy Ravitch
Share this:
Back To Top
%d bloggers like this: