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This Halloween-themed book helps to teach the concept of a missing mystery number, or variable, and how to solve these algebraic problems. The book starts out simple, giving a foundational understanding of equations and what the equals sign means, as well as defining variables, while supporting all of this through the pictures. But once the book reaches the point of using each operation to solve instead of a picture to solve, this can be confusing for anyone new to algebra concepts. This is because, at this point in the book, it becomes more rules-based rather than based on conceptual understanding. For example, the book states that what you do to one side of the equation, you must do to the other side, so if you divide by 4 on one side, you must divide by 4 on the other side. This all makes sense to someone who has spent some time with “balancing” equations in class or at home, but to a child that has not yet encountered this idea, this could be overwhelming. I highly recommend using some kind of manipulatives, like Hands-On Equations or something similar, to help your child visualize what is going on and why these algebra rules work.

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These easy to use manipulatives simplify algebraic concepts for kids. You use the balance along with various game pieces to represent and then solve algebraic equations. Using the balance helps reinforce kids’ understanding of the equals sign meaning “same as”, as well as helps them understand what they are doing on paper to “balance” the equations and solve for the variable. We use this program at my own school starting in the 4th grade, so I have seen just how effective using this set can be. This is a fantastic way to help children build their conceptual understanding of variables and basic algebra; I wish we had this when I was first learning these concepts!

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