Departments : Teaching With Your Librarian :
Mix-and-Math
By Sandy Meagher
This month's fun book picks will help kids recognize that math is all around us
To check out Sandy's "Getting Parents Involved" click here.
Polar bears, tigers and math, oh my! Kids will love these fun math-filled books.
Recently, a fifth grade teacher came into the library and requested all the books we had on polar bears. I then learned the fascinating story of Klondike and Snow, two newborn polar bear cubs who were born at the Denver Zoo and abandoned by their mother. The zoo staff had to find out what nutrients the animals needed and how much they should eat. They helped the cubs become healthy and showed them how to swim and play.
Now what about the math? Check out Polar Bear Math: Learning About Fractions from Klondike and Snow by Ann Whitehead Nagda and Cindy Bickel (Holt, 2004, ISBN: 0-805-07301-9). Kids can see how fractions were used when the cubs were being raised by reading the left-hand side of the book. So the fifth graders not only covered their science curriculum, but they also covered math.
More baby animal math
Ann Whitehead Nagda has also written two other animal math books, Tiger Math: Learning to Graph from a Baby Tiger (Holt, 2000, ISBN: 0-805-06248-3) and Chimp Math: Learning about Time from a Baby Chimpanzee (Holt, 2002, ISBN: 0-805-06674-8). If you haven't seen Ann Whitehead Nagda's website, check it out at www.annnagda.com
Combining math
An excellent series that has combined math with other curriculum is "Power Math" from PowerKids Press (www.powerkidspress.com). You will be amazed at titles like The Census and America's People: Analyzing Data Using Line Graphs and Tables and When There Were Dinosaurs: Using Expanded Notation to Represent Numbers in the Millions.
I especially liked combining social studies and math with Explorers in North America: Solving Addition and Subtraction Problems Using Timelines,/em>. My fourth grade students were studying explorers in their classrooms during social studies, and their teachers asked me to spend time reinforcing what they had taught about timelines. The clearly printed timeline also had a question: How many years passed between the time the colonies declared their freedom from England and the time Lewis and Clark reached the Pacific Ocean? The subtraction problem and answer are right on the page and I could project the information for all to see.
Money, money, money!
Math and money is a subject that's always popular with kids. A third grade teacher found the series "Money and Banks" by Gareth Stevens Publishing (www.garethstevens.com) very helpful. Within the series are titles like Saving Money, Paper Money, Coins and What is a Bank? Practical application of all this learning is important for students. After Hurricane Katrina, our students collected coins for the relief effort. It was heartwarming to see the kids empty their pockets and count their change.
Extreme math
A wonderful series called "Mathworks!" also from Gareth Stephens Publishing features books with very high interest for middle grade readers. The titles in this series include: Using Math to Conquer Extreme Sports, Using Math to Create a Movie Stunt, Using Math to Solve a Crime and Using Math to Win a Grand Prix. The students get excited when they see the action-filled photographs and solving the problems becomes part of the fun.
More great math picks
Teachers continually ask for current and practical math books to assist them with their teaching. Math Strategies You Can Count On: Tools & Activities to Build Math Appreciation, Understanding & Skills by Char Forsten (Crystal Springs Books, 2005, ISBN:1-884-54871-7) is a wonderful working tool for teachers. Every math activity is clearly explained and lists "Directions," and "Materials Needed."
Math word problems many times stump children because their reading skills aren't on par with their math skills. I recently found some great books to help our Math Club students. Prufrock Press (www.prufrock.com) has a series called "Activities for Advanced Learning" and included are Math Problem Solvers, Camp Fraction and Puzzled by Math!
As you can see, math truly is everywhere. If you make reading about math fun for your students, their learning and love of numbers will just go on and on. Enjoy!
To check out Sandy's "Getting Parents Involved" click here.
Sandy Meagher is the Library Department Chairperson and School Librarian in the Wayne Highlands School District, Honesdale, PA.
January, 2006, Vol.36, No.4
