Zero the Hero

Zero the Hero by Joan Holub
Illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld
Published by Henry Holt and Company
2012

     "Unlike most numbers, Zero believed himself to be a hero. He just needed a chance to prove it."  Unfortunately, Zero just didn't seem to fit among the other numbers. He needed other numbers to have some value, and by himself he amounted to zero, zilch, nada.  He was confused with the letter "O" and donuts, and whether he was added or subtracted, the answer never changed. He just didn't count.  One day, Zero discovered that he had a special power when it came to multiplication: he made things disappear.  Afraid of him the other numbers ran away and feeling more like a villain than a hero, Zero rolled himself "heading for infinity or oblivion, whichever came first."  But when a group of truly villainous Roman Numerals captured all the other digits, Zero finally has a chance to be the hero he always knew he could be.
     It's been a while since I've found a Math Picture Book that I just HAVE to have in my math classroom library. Zero the Hero is that kind of book.  It's hilariously clever, full of content area connections, and Lichtenheld's illustrations are delightful and filled with a sense of humor that will captivate students and teachers alike. Zero turns out to be a pretty cool and useful hero.

Math Appeal

,

Math Appeal (Mind-Stretching Math Riddles) by Greg Tang
Illustrated by Harry Briggs
2003

    Math Appeal is a collection of rhymes/riddles, each one posing a different math problem to solve.  The riddles are challenging and fun.  Greg Tang wrote Math Appeal as a way to make math fun and engaging; he believes "language and art are the keys to make math more meaningful to children."  Each riddle encourages thinking outside the box and finding creative ways to solve math problems.  The illustrations are an essential part of the riddle and add clues to solve the problems.
     Math Appeal is a great book to read at home with kids 7-10 years old, as well as a perfect addition to the math classroom library.  At the back of the book you can find all the answer and explanations to each riddle.  Read it cover to cover or work on one riddle a day, either way, you'll enjoy it.

365 Penguins

365 Penguins by Jean-Luc Fromental
Illustrated by Joelle Jolivet
2006

     "On New Year's Day, at nine o'clock in the morning, a delivery man rang our doorbell. I opened the box - a penguin!"  There was no sender's name on the box, just a note that said: "I'm number 1. Feed me when I'm hungry."  Next day, another package arrives with another penguin. The next day another and by week's end, 7 penguins are running around the house.  And the penguins keep coming, one a day, every day, for a whole year...365 penguins.  
     I love this book.  Maybe it's the fact that it has a math component to it; the family keeps finding ways to organize the penguins by dividing, calculate the new costs of living by multiplying, and packing the penguins in by calculating area. What else can a Math lover like me wish for in a picture book?  Now add to that the clever illustrations, the enlarged format, and the thrill of looking amongst hundreds of penguins for a special one with blue feet, and you have found a perfect book for me.   As a teacher, it's a great book to explore math concepts, calendars, but also science since there is an environmental discussion that arises from the premise of penguins being displaced because of global warming.  This is one of my new favorites!

Math Attack

Math Attack! by Joan Horton
Illustrated by Kyrsten Brooker
2009

     I guess I must confess that I'm a complete math geek.  I love math!...just ask my students.  So finding a picture book about math combines my two loves:  words and numbers.  As soon as I spotted Math Attack! at my city library, I knew I had to check it out.
     A girl is in her arithmetic class when her teachers asks her what's 7 times 10.  She tries so hard to come up with the right answer, that her brain explodes and numbers start running all over the place causing all kinds of trouble.  Chaos endures until she finally comes up with the right answer.  Excited about feeling like math had finally clicked in her head, she returns to arithmetic class and says "Hooray, bring it on!"
     I love the fact that the main character in a book about math is a girl and that she ends the story eager to learn more about numbers.  I've spent many a days trying to change my girl students' preconceptions about math.  They see it as a boy subject at which they will never be able to be good at.  We need more read-alouds to debunk that stereotype.  Girls who like math rock!