Math Fables

This collection of whimsical math stories gives young kids a head start on the road to higher math. More than just another counting book, it begins building the foundation for arithmetic and problem solving by encouraging children to think about numbers in creative ways. Important adding and grouping concepts are introduced, together with light and cheerful lessons about life.

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For some children, math comes fairly easily. For others, it is a challenge nearly every step of the way. What accounts for this difference? Is there a special math gene that makes math easy for some kids and difficult for others? Fortunately the answer is "no." Success is often determined by how fluent children are with numbers, the language of math. When kids develop a good understanding of numbers at an early age, everything else - arithmetic, algebra, even geometry - follows naturally.

In writing this book, my goal is to present numbers in a way that will make math easier for all children. I believe it is especially important to lay the groundwork early and I have written Math Fables for ages 3 to 6. Each fable begins by introducing numbers the traditional way, by counting. How much is the number six? It's a group of "one, two, three, four, five, six." This familiar approach emphasizes size and order. As the stories unfold, each number is shown in different ways. The six becomes a group of 4 and 2, a group of 5 and 1, and finally two groups of 3. The idea is to encourage kids to begin thinking more efficiently in groups rather than counting one number at a time.

There are several important advantages to this approach. First, it lays the foundation for place value, the basis of our number system. When children are introduced to grouping at an early age, thinking in terms of ones, tens, and hundreds follows naturally. Second, it is the first step to building strong computational skills. Breaking numbers into smaller, more manageable pieces and combining them in smart ways is the key to arithmetic. Finally, grouping encourages flexible and creative thinking by requiring kids to think about the same number in different ways.

I hope children and adults alike will smile at the stories, delight in the artwork, and brighten at the memory of times they shared together.