Math & Literature: Multiplication, Division, Number Sense, Probability, Data Analysis, Time
Multiplication and Division
Amanda Bean's Amazing Dream by Cindy Neuschwander
The advantages of multiplication are introduced in a simple story about a girl who loves to count things, both in and out of school, but is unsure how multiplication will speed up the process. (multiplication)
17 Kings and 42 Elephants by Margaret Mahy
A royal romp through a tongue-twisting tropical paradise. Connections to division can be made using the number of elephants and the kings.
A Grain of Rice by Helena Clare Pittman
Pong Lo, the son of a farmer asks for his majesty's daughter's hand in marriage. He wins her hand in marriage with an ingenious request using multiplication.
A Remainder of One by Elinor J Pinczes
When the queen of her bugs demands that her army march in even lines, Private Joe divides the marchers into more and more lines so that he will not be left out of the parade. Great book for whole group lesson on division with remainders of one. Children can use manipulatives and follow right along! (division)
Anno's Mysterious Multiplying Jar by Anno Mitsumasa
Demonstrates the concept of factorials in mathematics.
Anno's Magic Seeds by Anno Mitsumasa
A gift from a wizard makes Jack's fortune grow by ones and twos then threes and fours, then faster and faster, challenging you to keep track of his riches. (doubling)
Bunches and Bunches of Bunnies by Louise Mathews
Teaches the wonders of multiplication in a fun, silly way.
2 x 2 = Boo! By Loreen LeedyThis has five different stories that were made to help a child learn their multiplication. The five stories are The Disappearing Zero, One More Time, Seeing Double, Triple Scare, Foursight, and Boo Stew.
Each Orange Had Eight Slices by Paul Giganti
If each orange has 8 slices and each slice has 2 seeds, how many seeds are there in all? You'll have fun whether you multiply, add or count your way through the math puzzles hiding in the world all around you.
One Hundred Hungry Ants by Elinor J Pinczes
One hundred very hungry ants hurry to sample the delights of a picnic, but marching in single file seems too slow for 100 empty tummies. The smallest ant of all suggests they travel in 2 rows of 50, four rows of 25 . . . and the division begins.
Sea Squares by Joy HulmeRhyming text and illustrations of such sea animals as whale, gulls, clown fish, and seal provide opportunities to practice counting and squaring numbers from one to ten.
The Doorbell Rang by Pat Hutchins
Ma has made a dozen delicious cookies. It should be plenty for her two children. But then the doorbell rings--and rings and rings. Each ring of the doorbell brings more friends to share the delicious cookies Ma has made. Great book to introduce division. Children can follow along with their own manipulatives.
The Greatest Guessing Game by Robert Froman
This book illustrates how we use division in our everyday lives without really thinking of it.
The Great Divide by Dayle Ann Dodds
Eighty people begin to race in the Great Divide, but each new challenge divides the number of racers in half.
Multiplying Menace: The Revenge of Rumplestiltskin by Pam Calvert
Ten years ago, the Queen stopped Rumplestiltskin from taking her first born son. He has returned for revenge. Mice, bugs, and other pests multiply in great numbers. Is Peter clever enough to stop the multiplying menace?
The Best of Times by Greg Tang
Instead of taking a short-term approach based on repetition and memorization to help kids master their times tables, the focus of this book is on the long-term of helping children develop a sounder, more intuitive understanding of multiplication. Poems and pictures are used to convey and clarify concepts. (Ages 7-10)
Number Sense
A Million Fish...More of Less by Patrick McKissack
In an original yarn of the Louisiana bayou, McKissack honors the tradition of bragging about the one that got away. Hugh Thomas hears that strange things happen on the Bayou Clapateaux, but he's skeptical--until he invents a fish story of his own.
Can You Count to a Googol? By Robert E. Wells
This counting book begins with 1 and moves up: 10, 100, 10,000, 100,000, and so on, building to the concept of a googol, the number represented by 1 followed by 100 zeros.
How Much is a Million? By David Schwartz
Ever wonder just what a million of something means? How about a billion? Or a trillion? Here Schwartz uses concepts that are simple to help readers conceptualize astronomical numbers like a million, billion, and trillion.
More Than One by Miriam Schlein
In this concept book, readers learn that one can be more than one, as when "one pair of shoes is two shoes." Throughout the book, this idea is expanded upon to show that the number one can represent other numbers.
My Even Day by Doris Fisher and Dani Sneed
In this rhyming sequel to One Odd Day, the young boy awakens to find that it is another strange day now everything is even, and his mother has two heads!
On Beyond a Million: An Amazing Journey Math by David Schwartz
Professor X and his dog, Y, teach kids how to count exponentially by powers of 10 (1, 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000, etc.), beginning at 1 and working all the way up to a googol (a 1 followed by 100 zeros) and beyond. Along with the fun comes some powerful learning, as this unique counting book helps kids understand our number system, which is based on multiples of 10.
One Hungry Monster by Susan O'Keefe
Monster fans can count up to ten with One Hungry Monster. (PreK-K)
One Odd Day by Doris Fisher and Dani Sneed
A humorous, rhythmic, read-aloud, story about a boy who awakens to find that everything around him is odd. He has three sleeves on his shirt, and his dog has five legs...
Picking Peas For a Penny by Angela Shelf Medearis
Grandfather has promised Angeline and Jon a penny for each pound of peas they pick. Young readers will marvel at what five pennies could buy.
The King's Commissioners by Aileen Friedman
A confused king has appointed a commissioner to handle every problem in the kingdom from flat tires to chicken pox. Now he has no idea how many commissioners there are, and he orders his royal advisors to gather and count them as they walk through the door. The first advisor counts by twos, the second by fives, and the little princess by tens. Of course, they all arrive at the same answer.
The Wolf's Chicken Stew by Keiko Kasza
Resisting the immediate gratification of chicken stew, an insatiable wolf decides instead to fatten up his prey, leaving on her doorstep 100 ``scrumptious'' delicacies for each of three nights.
Probability and Data Analysis
Chrysanthemum by Kevin HenkesThis book presents an excellent opportunity for a data collection activity as students collect data on the lengths of their names comparing them to the length of Chrysanthemum's name.
It's Probably Penny by Loreen Leedy
Lisa's class is studying probability. For homework, she must make predictions about what will, might, and can't happen over the weekend. She must also think of different events with varying chances of happening. Penny, her Boston terrier, helps Lisa visualize the situations needed for the assignment.
Jumanji by Chris Van AllsburgWhen Judy and Peter find a board game in the park, they take it home, hoping to alleviate their boredom. One live lion, an erupting volcano, and a dozen destructive monkeys later, the children are no longer bored. Their jungle adventure game has come to life! Readers will tremble along with Judy and Peter, urging them to roll the dice that will plunge them from one perilous predicament into another. (Ages 9 to 12)
Probably Pistachio by MathStart2
Nothing goes right for Jack all day long. He can't find his favorite sneakers, he spills milk on his math homework, and worst of all, he gets tuna fish for lunch. Readers will learn how to tell when something is certain, more likely, less likely, or impossible as Jack keeps hoping his streak of bad luck will break.
Time
Bats Around the Clock by Kathi Appelt
With their swinging text and groovy illustrations, the creators of Bat Jamboree and Bats on Parade don't miss a beat when it comes to the basics. Telling time has never been so much fun!
Telling Time With Big Mama Cat by Dan Harper
A snack at 9:00, a nap at 10:00, sneaking onto the forbidden chair at 11:00--telling time is the only way Big Mama Cat can remember all the important things she has to do. Follow Big Mama Cat from sunrise till day's end, and you can learn to tell time, too! A sturdy fold-out page at the front of the book reveals a clock with movable plastic hands. Young readers can change the time as Big Mama Cat moves from one adventure to the next in her busy day.
The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle
Progressing through a series of brilliantly colored die-cut pages, a bad-tempered braggart becomes a nicer, happier, better-behaved bug. The arrangement of the book introduces concepts of comparative size and telling time.
This is the featured reading list from the 2009 Read to Me Conference breakout session by Laurie Taguchi and Ann Ushiroda.