Making Math Fun

Materials for Teaching and Learning Mathematical Concepts

Websites

See the Mathematics Hotlist from the Franklin Institute Science Museum for links to numerous math-related resources. (http://sln.fi.edu/tfi/hotlists/math.html)
The PBS TeacherSource for Math suggests student activities by grade level to help teachers make connections between math concepts and other topics. (http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/math.htm)
Designed for use by secondary students and above, Math in Daily Life, produced by the Annenberg/CPB Project, looks at how numbers affect every decisions, such as following a recipe and buying a car. http://www.learner.org/exhibits/dailymath/
What Good is Math? - Describes various everyday activities, such as shopping and travel, that involve using math skills. Hosted by the University of Richmond.
Find some creative story problems invented by very clever elementary school teachers at Math Word Problems for Children and Mathstory.com.

CD-ROMs

Many titles in MCPL's CD-ROM Collection are designed to teach math skills, such as Math and Science Excelerator and the Math Blaster series. Try a word search in our catalog for "math software" to find other titles, or please ask a librarian for assistance."

Instructional Materials:

Allison, L. Eenie Meenie Miney Math!
Math Play for You and Your Preschooler (J 372.7 Al)
Bautista, V. How to Teach Your Child:
Things to Know from Kindergarten Through Grade 6 (649.68 Ba)
Berge, M. Help Your Child Excel in Math :
Easy, Practical Methods That Make Learning Fun (649.68 Be)
DeRoche, E. 400 Group Games and Activities for Teaching Math (372.7 De)
Doman, G. How to Teach Your Baby Math (Parenting J 649.69 Do)
Erdsnerker, B. Mathematics Simplified and Self-taught (510.076 Er)
Flansburg, S. Math Magic for Your Kids: Hundreds of Games and Exercises from the Human Calculator to Make Math Fun and Easy (Parenting J 371.042 Fl)
Gibson, R. Number Games (J 372.7 Gi)
Griffiths, R. Books You Can Count On: Linking Mathematics and Literature (J 372.7 Gr)
Kaczmarski. K. Exploring Math with Books Kids Love (Parenting J 372.7 Ka)
Moomaw, S. More Than Counting: Whole Math Activities for Preschool and Kindergarten (Parenting J 372.7 Mo)
Nordstrom, P. Solve Your Child's Math Problems:
Quick and Easy Lessons for Parents (510 No)
Pohl, V. How to Enrich Geometry Using String Designs (372.73 Po)
Polonsky, L. Math for the Very Young: A Handbook of Activities for Parents and Teachers (Parenting J649.68 Ma)
Schiller, P. Count on Math: Activities for Small Hands and Lively Minds (Parenting J 372.7 Sc)
Slavin, S. Math: For Your 1st and 2nd Grader (Parenting J 371.042 Sl))
Sperling, A.P. Arithmetic Made Simple (513 Sp)
Walsh, A. Help Your Child with Maths (510 He)
Walton, L. Book Into Math (for Grades K-3) (Parenting J 372.7 Wa)
Yablun, R. How To Develop Your Child's Gifts and Talents in Math(649.68 Ya Juvenile)
Zeman, A. Everything You Need to Know About Math Homework (J 510 Ze)

The January 1997 issue of Scholastic's Early Childhood Today magazine features a cover story on "Math Moments" with ideas for teaching math concepts throughout the day, and a 12-page activity guide for investigating shapes.

The cover story for the October 1997 issue of Odyssey magazine is titled "The Nature of Math" and includes articles on knots and images of DNA, fractals, baseball and jobs that use math skills.

Careers:

Burnett, R.Careers for Number Crunchers & Other Quantitative Types (510.23)
Kaplan, A. Careers for Number Lovers (331.7 Ka)
Richardson, P. Great Careers for People Interested in How Things Work. (J 602.3 Ri)
Shortchanging Girls, Shortchanging America (370.193 Sho Audio-visual)

Math Books and Mathematical Concepts:

Adler, D. Fraction Fun (J 513.26 Ad)
Adler, I. Mathematics (J 510 Ad)
Anno, M. Anno's Mysterious Multiplying Jar (J 512.7 An)
Bendick, J. How Much & How Many (J 530.8 Be)
Burns, M. Math for Smarty Pants (J 513 Bu)
Chapman, G. Exploring Time (J 529 Ch)
Cobb, V. The Long and Short of Measurement (J 530.8 Co)
Duke, K. Twenty is Too Many (Ej 512 Du)
Fisher, L. Number Art: Thirteen 123s from Around the World (J 513 Fi)
Godfrey, Neal S. Ultimate Kids' Money Book (J 332.024 Go)
Julius, E. Arithmetricks: 50 Easy Ways to Add, Subtract, Multiply and Divide (J 513.9 Ju)
King, A. Math for Fun Projects: with hands-on games and experiments using fractions, numbers, plotting, measuring and much, much more (J 510 Ki)
Leedy, L. 2 x 2 =Boo! A Set of Spooky Multiplication Stories (J 513.2 Le)
Leedy, L. Fraction Action (J 513.26 Le)
Maganzini, C. Cool Math: math tricks, amazing math activities, cool calculations, awesome math factoids and more (J510 Ma)
Markle, S. Measuring Up (J 530.8 Ma)
Massin. Fun With 9umbers (J 513 Ma)
Morgenstern, S. Metric Puzzles Tricks & Games (J 389.152)
Nagda, A. Tiger Math: Learning to Graph from a Baby Tiger (J 511.5 Na)
Palmer, H. Singing Multiplication Tables (J 513.213 Pal CD/Cassette)
Pappas, T. The Adventures of Penrose, the Mathematical Cat (J 510 Pa)
Pappas, T. Math for Kids and Other People Too! (J 510 Pa)
Razzell, A. Probability: The Science of Change (J 519 Ra) Riedel, M. Winning with Numbers (J 519.5 Ri)
Rogers, P. The Shapes Game (J 516.15 Ro)
Schwartz, D. How Much is a Million? (J 513.2 Sc)
Schwartz, D. If You Hopped Like a Frog (J 513.24 Sc)
Sharman, L. The Amazing Book of Shapes:
Explore Math through Shapes and Patterns (J 516.15 Sh)
Srivastava, J. Number Families (J 513.5 Sr)
Tang, G. The Best of Times : Math Strategies that Multiply (J 513.213 Ta)
Simple rhymes offer hints on how to multiply any number by zero through ten without memorizing the multiplication tables.
Tang, G. The Grapes of Math: Mind Stretching Math Riddles (J 513 Ta)
Illustrated riddles and word problems help children develop strategies for solving math problems.
Tang, G. Math Appeal (J 513 Ta)
Rhyming anecdotes present opportunities for simple math activities and hints for solving.
Tang, G. Math for All Seasons (J 513 Ta)
Through colorful illustrations, introduces to young children creative ways to solve math problems.
Tang, G. Math-terpieces : The Art of Problem-Solving (J 513 Ta)
A series of rhymes about artists and their works introduces counting and grouping numbers, as well as such artistic styles as cubism, pointillism, and surrealism.
VanCleave, J. Math for Every Kid (J 510 Va)
see also: Geometry for Every Kid (J 516 Va)
VanCleave, J. Play and Find Out about Math: Easy Activities for Young Children (J 510 Va)
Vorderman, C. How Math Works: 100 Ways Parents and Kids Can Share the Wonders of Mathematics (J 510 Vo)
Zaslavsky C. Zero Is it Something? Is it Nothing? (J 512.72 Za)

Discovering Shapes (series)

Circles (J 793.74 Ri)
Patterns (J 793.74 St)
Polygons (J 793.74 St)
Rectangles (J 793.74 St)
Three-dimensional Shapes (J 793.74 St)
Triangles (J 793.74 Ri)

Fun With ... series by Patilla for preschoolers

Fun with Numbers (Ej 512 Pa)
Fun with Patterns (Ej 513 Pa)
Fun with Shapes (Ej 513 Pa)
Fun with Sizes (Ej 152.1 Pa)

I Love Math (series) from Time-Life for Children:

The House that Math Built (J 510 Ho)
The Mystery of the Sunken Treasure (J 510 My)
Play Ball - Sports Math (J 510 Pl)
The Search for the Mystery Planet (J 510 Se)
... and more!

Knowabout (series):

Capacity (Ej 530.8 Pl)
Length (Ej 530.8 Pl)
Numbers (Ej 512 Pl)
Time (Ej 529 Pl)

Math in My World (series) by Amato, W. for early primary grades

Math in the Backyard (J 513.211 Am)
Math in the Car (J 513.211 Am)
Math in the Kitchen (J 513.2 Am)
Math in the Neighborhood (J 513.211 Am)
Math on the Playground (J 513.21 Am)
Math at the Store (J 510 Am)

Math Links (series): for early primary grades

Measuring(J 530.8 Pa)
Numbers (J 510 Pa)
Patterns (J 510 Pa)
Shapes (J 516.15)
Sorting (J 511.32 Pa)
Time (J 529 Pa)

Math Live (series): (Includes challenging activities for older elementary)

Games and Puzzles (J 793.74 Ki)
Handling Data (J 519.5 Ki)
Measures and Space (J 516 Ki)
Numbers (J 513 Ki)
Patterns (J 516.15 Ki)
Shapes (J 516.15 Ki)

Math Success (series): (Explains problem-solving techniques and includes examples - geared toward older elementary)

Fractions and Decimals (J 513.26 Ca)
Percents and Ratios (J 513.24 Ca)
Pre-algebra and Algebra (J 512 Ca)

Mini Math (series): (Includes activities for primary grades)

Measuring (J 530.8 Ki)
Number Play (J 793.74 Ki)
Numbers (J 513 Ki)
Patterns (J 516.15 Ki)
Shapes (J 516.15 Ki)
Sorting (J 511.32 Ki)

Read All About Numbers (series) by Patten, J.

Numbers and Age (J 612.6 Pa)
Numbers and Counting (J 513.2 Pa)
Numbers and Measuring (J 530.8 Pa)
Numbers and Money (J 332.4 Pa)
Numbers and Speed (J 531.3 Pa)
Numbers and Sports (J 796 Pa)

Take Off with (series):

Measuring(J 530.8 He)
Numbers(J 513.2 He)
Puzzles (J 513.2 He)
Shapes (J 516.15 He)
Sorting and Sets (J 511.32 He)
Time (J 529.7 He)

A Young Math Book (series)

Branley, F. Measure With Metric (J 389.152 Br)
Fey, J. Long, Short, High, Low, Thin, Wide (J 389.15 Fe)
Froman, R. Bigger and Smaller (J 530.8 Fr)
Sitomer, M. How Did Numbers Begin? (J 513.2 Si)
Srivastava, J. Averages (J 519.5 Sr)
Srivastava, J. Weighing and Balancing (J 531.1 Sr)
... and more!

Mathematical Games and Brain Teasers:

Adler, D. Calculator Riddles (J 793.735 Ad) Adler, D. Easy Math Puzzles (J 793.735 Ad)
Anno, M. Anno's Magic Seeds (J 793.73 An)
Anno, M. Anno's Math Games I, II, III (J 793.74 An)
Barr, G. Entertaining with Number Tricks (J 793.74 Ba)
Blum, R. Math Tricks, Puzzles & Games (J 793.74 Bl)
Blum, R. Mathamusements (J 793.74 Bl)
Bolt, B. Mathematical Activities: A Resource Book for Teachers(793.74 Bo)
Bolt, B. More Mathematical Activities: A Resource Book for Teachers (793.74 Bo.)
Bolt, B. The Mathematical Fun Fair (793.74 Bo)
Bolt, B. The Amazing Mathematical Amusement Arcade (793.74 Bo)
Burns, M. The Book of Think : Or, How to Solve a Problem Twice Your Size (J 153.43 Bu)
Burns, M. How Many Feet? How Many Tails? : A Book of Math Riddles (J 793.735 Bu)
Chernow, F. Classroom Portfolio of Energizers, Puzzles, Quizzes, Games and Brain Teasers. (372.13 Ch - 2nd floor)
Maganzini, C. Cool Math: math tricks, amazing math activities, cool calculations, awesome math factoids and more (J 510 Ma)
Markle, S. Math Mini Mysteries (J 793.74 Ma)
Read, R. Tangrams (J 793.73 Re)
Robinson, H. Move and Learn Math Activities (Parent/Teacher Room J372.7 Ro)
White, L. Math-A-Magic: Number Tricks for Magicians (J 793.8 Wh)
Wyler, R. Math Fun with Money Puzzlers (J 793.74 Wy)
Wyler, R. Math Fun with Tricky Lines and Shapes (J 793.74 Wy)
Wyler, R. Nutty Number Riddles(J 793.74 Wy)
Zaslavsky, C. Math Games and Activities from Around the World> (J 793.74 Za)

Juvenile Fiction and Fiction/Non-fiction Picturebooks:

Allen, P. Mr. Archimedes Bath (Ej Al)
Appelt, K. The Bat Jamboree (Ej Ap)
Appelt, K. Bats on Parade (Ej Ap)
Atherlay, S. Math in the Bath (and other fun places, too!) (EJ 512 At)
Bang, M. Ten, Nine, Eight (Ej 510 Ba)
Barry, D. The Rajah's Rice (J 398.2 Ra)
Bauer, J. Sticks (J Ba)
Beaton. C. One Moose, Twenty Mice (Ej Be)
Birch, D. The King's Chessboard (Ej Bi)
Blackstone, S. Grandma Went to Market (Ej Bl)
Boweb, B. Gathering: A Northwoods Coutning Book (Ej 510 Bo)
Bradbury, J. One Carton of Oops! (Ej Br)
Brittain, B. Mystery of the Several Sevens (J Br - ELL)
Burns, M. Spaghetti and Meatballs for All! A Mathematical Story (Ej Bu)
Christelow, E. Five Little Monkees Jumping on the Bed (Ej Ch)
Christelow, E. Five Little Monkees Sitting in a Tree (Ej Ch)
Clement, R. Counting on Frank (Ej Cl)
Daniels. T. Math Man (Ej Da)
Duffey, B. The Math Wiz (J Du)
Enderle, J. Where are You, Little Zack? (Ej En)
Friedman, A. The King's Commissioners (Ej Fr)
Glass, J. Fly on the Ceiling (J Gl - Easy Chapter Book)
Grossman, B. My Little Sister Ate One Hair (Ej Gr)
Grover, M. Amazing & Incredible Counting Stories (Ej 510 Gr)
Harley, B. Sitting Down to Eat (Ej Ha)
Hopkins, L. Marvelous Math: A Book of Poems (J 811.008 Ho)
Hulme, J. Sea Sums (Ej 512 Hu)
Hutchins, P. The Doorbell Rang (Ej Hu)
Juster, N. The Phantom Tollbooth (J Ju)
Kaplan, M. Henry and the Boy Who Thought Numbers Were Fleas (J Ka)
Kneen, M. When You're Not Looking... A Storytime Counting Book (Ej 510 Kn)
Lasky, K. The Librarian Who Measured the Earth (J 921 Era)
Loomis, C. One Cow Coughs (Ej Lo)
Mathnet (series):
Detectives Use Mathematical Knowledge to Decipher Clues and Solve Mysteries:

Connell. D. The Case of the Smart Dummy (J Co)
Connell. D. The Case of the Unnatural (J Co)
Connell, D. The Case of the Willing Parrot (J Co)
Connell, D. Despair in Monterey Bay (J Co)
Connell, D. The Map with a Gap (J Co)

MathStart (series): Nonfiction picturebooks at preschool and school-age reading levels.
Mazzola, F. Counting is for the Birds (Ej 598.2 Ma)
McMillan, B. Eating Fractions (Ej 513.26 Ma)
McKibbon, H. The Token Gift (J Ma)
Merrill, J. The Toothpaste Millionaire (J Me)
Mills, C. 7 x 9 = Trouble (J Mi - Easy Chapter Book)
Neuschwander, C. Amanda Bean's Amazing Dream: A Mathematical Story (J 513.213 Ne)
Nikola-Lisa, W. One Hole in the Road (Ej 510 Ni)
Myller, R. How big is a foot? (Ej My)
Pilegard, V. The Warlord's Beads (Ej Pi)
Pinczes, E. Arctic Fives Arrive (Ej Pi)
Pinczes, E. 100 Hungry Ants (Ej Pi)
Pinczes, E. A Remainder of One (Ej Pi)
Ritchie, A. Erin McEwan, Your Days Are Numbered (J Ri)
Samton. S. Ten Tiny Monsters (Ej 512 Sa)
Sandburg, C. Arithmetic (J 811 Sa)
Schmandt-Besserat, D. The History of Counting (J 513.5 Sc)
Scieszka, J. Math Curse (J Sc)
Sierra, J. Counting Crocodiles (Ej Si)
Silverman, E. The Halloween House (Ej Si - Holiday)
Sturges, P. Ten Flashing Fireflies(Ej St)
Thompson, L. One Riddle, One Answer (J Th)
Viorst, J. Alexander, Who Used To Be Rich Last Sunday (Ej Vi)
Wakefield, A. Those Calculating Crows (Ej Wa)
Wells, R. Bunny Money (Ej We)
Winter, J. Josefina (Ej Wi)
Ziefert, H. Mother Goose Math (Ej 398.8 Zi)
Ziefert, H. Two Little Witches: A Halloween Counting Story (Ej Zi - Holiday)

See the book Exploring Math with Books Kids Love (Parenting J 372.7 Ka) for other suggested titles.

Compiled by L. Champelli for MCPL Children's Services (9/96)