Discover Math in Books

Support your Child’s Learning with Engaging Stories

Children Love Stories

Parents and teachers can take advantage of this by using literature as a vehicle for teaching and consolidating understanding. Literature can highlight concepts, act as a springboard to new math learning, stimulate discussion, or provide alternate explanations of a concept. It can make mathematical concepts more accessible, as it puts math into a meaningful context, provides visual aids for the students, and encourages communication, helping to support all learners.

Book List

Search a list of recommended books. I have purposely selected ones I feel are most effective for teaching math concepts and sparking kids’ interest. The list is not all encompassing, but I am always reading new books as they are released and scouring libraries to add great finds.

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Margot Lee Shetterly

This book brings to life the story of four African American female mathematicians working for NASA at the height of the Space Race between the United States and Russia—Katherine Johnson, Mary Jackson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Christine Darden. All talented mathematicians, they had to work under conditions of racism and sexism, but still distinguished themselves through their work and significant contributions to the agency…

E.L. Konigsburg

At 12 years old, Claudia is the oldest child in her family and feels woefully unappreciated at home. She decides to leave, but does not want to simply run away, and instead decides to run to someplace, choosing the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City as her temporary home. She brings along one of her brothers, Jamie, as an accomplice…

Steve Light

Taking place in New York City, a young boy searches for his lost dragon. On each page of pen-and-ink illustrations, the boy searches on, while also counting various objects, like buses, taxis, ships in the harbor, and hot dogs. Quite helpfully, the objects to be counted (numbers 1-20) are the only splashes of color on each page. With so many details on each page, there is always more to discover…

Julia Finley Mosca

From a young age, Raye Montague had her sights on becoming an engineer. Through her unending persistence and determination, Raye faced down sexism and racism and finally gained recognition for her contributions, which changed the course of submarine design…

Featured Articles

Why Do Teachers Use Manipulatives To Teach Math?

Why Do Teachers Use Manipulatives To Teach Math?

As parents, you may have noticed less emphasis on algorithms and memorization in mathematics and more emphasis on "sense-making" since the time when we were kids in elementary school. A big piece of this process is using manipulatives-- toys that are used as teaching...

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Why Use Children’s Literature to Teach Mathematics?

Why Use Children’s Literature to Teach Mathematics?

Children love stories. Parents and teachers can take advantage of this by using literature as a vehicle for teaching math and consolidating understanding. Children's literature can highlight concepts, act as a springboard to new math learning, stimulate discussion, or...

read more

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