500s: To Sum Up: Series Nonfiction on Math

Libraries are stocking a varied selection of books to help students learn and practice their math and problem-solving skills through appealing characters and interesting, real-world scenarios. These series find the right balance between teaching the concepts and holding children’s interest.

Gr 2-4–These attention-grabbing books will work in the right setting. Each spread describes one characteristic of the concept. Unfortunately, the texts do not simplify the topics enough for newcomers to the math. For example, Fraction states, “If you were a fraction, you could be divided more than once. You would be one unit subdivided into equal parts.” The cheerful acrylic illustrations explain the ideas well, and the cartoon creatures performing fun activities will appeal to children. There are a couple of quirky spots–in Odd, the number 1 is shown standing between 6 and 8, holding up an “odd” sign, for example. These titles are not for struggling students, but they will succeed as reinforcement.

K-Gr 2–These books show diverse children measuring or weighing everyday items. In Cup, friends measure wet and dry baking ingredients. Additional sections show youngsters apportioning other materials, ask questions such as how many cups it takes to fill a sink, challenge readers to figure out which of several photographed items is the relevant size, and add information about gallons. Some of the text is more advanced than the illustrations (in Foot, “Feet are used to measure the size of something. When you know how big a foot is, you can find out how big things are”). The vocabulary and concepts in these books may be too challenging for the youngest in the intended age group, but the limited amount of text, illustrations of young children, and small size may turn off older readers.

K-Gr 2–Each of these books introduces a basic counting concept and follows one method consistently to teach it. The methods vary; in 10 to 1 “take away” (subtraction) is used to get from one number to the next, but in 1 to 10 a sequence is used: “One hippo sprays water….Count it: one” and on the next page “…Count them: one, two.” Spreads devote three or four sentences to a number. In four of the books, an addition or subtraction equation shows how the result can be achieved, and, in all, a number line along the bottom highlights the relevant digit. Students will love these titles because there are plenty of friendly creatures to count, and the books make it easy to perform the task.

Gr 4-6–Accurate and concise, these well-written books do an excellent job of explaining without confusing and will serve as great introductions to the individual sports as well as adequate complements to math lessons. Concepts discussed include the dimensions of playing spaces, keeping score, and statistics. One or two math problems are posed per chapter, with the answers provided in an appendix. Each chapter contains several photographs with meaningful captions that enhance the text – for example, a picture of a tennis court is helpful in understanding the rules. These are appealing books for students interested in sports. There isn’t an abundance of math here, but the link to real-world applications is helpful.

Gr 4-6Striving to provide practical suggestions on managing money, each book begins and ends with a fictional account in which students embark on a relevant unit. Between that unfortunate framing are practical, well-written descriptions. Orr keeps in mind children’s interests and limitations, stressing, for example, parental involvement where important, such as in setting up bank accounts and getting jobs. Earning Money and Coins should generate the most demand. The former is realistic about the trade-offs involved in a child working and offers alternatives to true jobs (raking leaves, running errands), while the second includes a concise history of money in its introduction to collecting coins and currency. For readers with long term interests, the rest of the series will be useful. Savings explores banking and clearly explains compound interest; Stock Market describes in basic terms how the markets work and suggests activities to learn more before investing; and Budgeting demonstrates how planning can lead to significant financial gains. Stock photos feature multigenerational and diverse subjects and illustrate related locations and historical figures, while graphs and sidebars enhance the texts. Well-documented and informative introductions.–By Jeffrey A. French, formerly at Willoughby-Eastlake Public Library, Willowick, OH

In general, these books will be most effective for students who have a basic understanding of the concepts and would like to reinforce their skills. For older students, “Real World Math: Sports” deserves a place alongside favorites such as the “Sir Cumference Math Adventures” series (Charlesbridge). “Count the Critters” is an excellent choice for early elementary classrooms. Though “Math Fun” will be appealing to middle elementary students, background knowledge is even more important in this series. “Let’s Measure” tries to accomplish too much. The series will confuse young readers and will not appeal to older students.

Research, Writing, and Arithmetic: Series Nonfiction on the New Three R's (Spring 2009)