Numbers Are Nifty: 7 Books That Help Make Math Fun
by Devon A. Corneal
Come and count along with me. I have one, two, three, four, five, six, seven — yes, seven — books to help make math fun. The authors of these books have all figured out how to combine essential math skills with compelling and funny stories, beautiful illustrations, and enough wit and wisdom to make you wonder why you ever stopped doing math in the first place. Whether your child could use some extra support in math, or you just want to add some math problems to your family’s daily routine, these books can help.
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Counting Lions
Available from:The cover alone makes me want to dive into this spectacular, vivid counting book! Gorgeously illustrated with extraordinary charcoal drawings of wildlife, your child will be so captivated by the pictures and animal facts that he won’t even know he’s doing math.
(All Ages)Also available from: -
I'm Trying to Love Math
Available from:Author-illustrator Bethany Barton's book shows kids all the fun and incredible ways we use math every day - from baking cookies to traveling to the moon! She opens the book with a perfectly apt quote from Margaret Wertheim: "Mathematics, in a sense, is logic let loose in the field of the imagination."
(Ages 4-8)Also available from: -
Peg + Cat: The Race Car Problem
A follow-up to The Chicken Problem, the latest in the Peg + Cat series is another great way to sneak math into your children’s everyday life. And you can do it without them “totally freaking out”! (If you didn’t get the joke, you aren’t an avid PBS Kids viewer, so I encourage you to watch this useful video.) Peg and her trusted feline friend will need all their knowledge of shapes, simple addition, and subtraction if they’re going to win the Talapegga Twenty!
(Ages 3-7) -
Spend It!
Available from:Featuring kid-friendly financial planning concepts and a super cute bunny with a pocketful of carrots, Cinder McLeod's Moneybunny series is a phenomenally helpful way to teach even the youngest readers how to spend - and earn and save - thoughtfully. Complete the set with McLeod's forthcoming title, Give It!
(Ages 3-5)Also available from: -
How to Two
Available from:How to Two doubles as both a counting concept book and a sweet, celebratory story about making friends and practicing inclusivity. Set on a bright and bustling playground, the book counts along as one boy on the slide grows into ten new friends playing together…and then subtracts back down to one as the children set off for home.
(Ages 3-5)Also available from: -
Ten Magic Butterflies
Available from:Did you know Wendy from The Wonder Years grew up to be a famous mathematician and math-education advocate? She's created a number of approachable math books for readers of all ages, including the New York Times bestseller Goodnight, Numbers. In her latest, young readers subtly learn how to group numbers while magical fairies transform flowers into butterflies.
(Ages 4-6)Also available from: -
Count on Me
Available from:Like I'm Trying to Love Math, Count on Me gives children a whole new perspective on the world of math, this time through the curious and appreciative perspective of a young girl who notices the artfulness of math - including geometric shapes - everywhere she turns. Math isn't all about numbers, but it is all pretty wondrous.
(Ages 3-7)Also available from:
