Math

Math has the power to help solve problems. When introduced in a way that appeals to students, math can be a lot of fun! Kids need new concepts explained to them in easy language. Children learn best when they understand why it might be meaningful and useful. Using children's literature to teach math helps students realize all the different ways they will use math in real-life situations. If kids see how math will help them in the real world, they will feel it is important to learn, and get more out of their learning. Therefore, finding texts with good content, as well as being appealing to students, is very important. Many math texts can have interactive qualities which help engage the learner. They are most often written with an informal voice to capture the reader's attention. There are many different children's books using math as a core concept. In fact, almost all of the concepts introduced in elementary school should have literature that references them. A classroom library should include books teaching all the concepts covered throughout the year, because this is a way for students to be explained the concepts in ways they can understand. Having books that show math being used in real-life, meaningful contexts is also essential.

Some of my favorite book choices:

The Hershey's Addition Book
By: Jerry Pallotta

Pallotta, J. (2001). The hershey's kisses addition book. New York, New York: Scholastic.

Interest Level: K-3
Grade Level: 2.5
Lexile: 370L
Guided Reading: NR


Jerry Pallotta has several of these Hershey's Kisses and Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bars books that he wrote so that kids can use manipulatives to understand concepts with more ease. These books illustrate math concepts using Hershey's. Pallotta also has Hershey's books introducing subtraction, division and multiplication, and fractions. Students will be able to use the support of both the teacher and the Hershey's as a means to better understanding. When students can work with concepts in a hands-on activity, they will be more likely to retain the information. Students should also then be able to take the concept they learned and transfer it to other real-life situations. In this case, students should be able to count any object with one-to-one correspondence if they understand this text.

More Jerry Pallotta books




A Million Dots
By: Andrew Clements

Clements, A. (2006). A million dots. New York, New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.

Interest Level: K-5
Grade Level: 3.5
Lexile: 1110L
Guided Reading: P



Large numbers can be hard for students to conceptualize, but Clements does an excellent job through text and illustration of connecting numbers to numerical facts. For example, "To eat 675,000 Hershey's bars, you would have to eat one bar every 2 minutes, nonstop, for more than 234 days!" The author has a way of really helping kids visualize particular amounts, and helping them to see just how big a million is. Both students and adults alike have a hard time wrapping their head around large numbers, but books such as this help put numbers into perspective in an entertaining way. There are many books similar to this one, such as "How Much Is A Million?" by David M. Schwartz, but this is one of my favorites. The text features look updated and the facts used are more interesting than some others I have seen. Some of the facts used can also help tie the book into a Social Studies or Science unit. It is written in a conversational, informal voice which draws the reader in, and the bright images appeal to young students. 

Science

Science can be difficult to define because it covers so many different topics, but it is often defined as gaining knowledge through study or practice. There are many different possible fields of study within science. Most of those fields fall under either Biology, Chemistry, Physics, or Earth Science. Science in the elementary classroom will include lots of experimentation, hands-on learning, and inquiry practice. Informational science texts can easily be incorporated into the learning and help give students some background knowledge if introduced prior to activity. Science books can also be kept in the classroom library for students to use as references. Books full of simple experiments will also be an excellent resource. Since there are so many different types of science, I plan on having a wide variety of options in my classroom library. I will need books on space, the human body, animals, rocks and minerals, plants, experiments, and so much more. With these type of informational texts, it is very important for the information to be up-to-date, reliable, and presented in an appealing manner. Looking at author reliability is also a factor in choosing Science texts. National Geographic will be a good source to use, with their wide variety of books on different subject areas. They are always full of useful information and presented in a way that appeals to students.

Some of my favorite book choices:

Amazing Giant Wild Animals
By: Marie Greenwood & Polly Appleton

Greenwood, M., & Appleton, P. (2013). Amazing giant wild animals. New York, New York: DK Publishing.

Interest Level: K-4
Grade Level: Not available
Lexile: Not available
Guided Reading: Not available

 
Amazing Giant Wild Animals is educational, fun, and interactive. There are animal fact files on each animal that include information about their size, habitat, and diet, as well as many other random facts. Students will learn a lot about these animals with all the interesting, uncommon facts provided. This book  is an animal lover's dream! Each animal has a 2-page spread full of interesting information, and is well organized so that the reader doesn't feel overwhelmed. There are beautiful illustrations and real photos for each animal, with fold-out flaps for an interactive aspect. This would be best used in a unit on large animals, or to study animals on different continents. Students could compare and contrast the different characteristics of each animal and come up with hypotheses on why they think some of these facts hold true.




Ultimate Bodypedia
By: Christina Wilson, Patricia Daniels, and Anne Schreiber

Wilson, C., Daniels, P., & Schreiber, A. (2014). Ultimate body-pedia: an amazing inside-out tour of the human body. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic.

Interest Level: 2-5
Grade Level: Not available
Lexile: 1000L
Guided Reading: Not available


This fun, kid-friendly journey through the human body and all its systems answers kid's questions and keeps them engaged with health tips, top 10 lists, simple experiments, amazing facts, photos, illustrations, and diagrams. Students will find age-appropriate facts about their bodies. The pages are all bright and vibrant, and there is so much excellent information that all you have to do is open a page to learn something! This is one of the most visually appealing and informative books I have ever come across: an elementary classroom library must-have! Boys and girls alike will be engaged by this text. The information presented may be slightly difficult both in concept and text complexity, so it may be a book that requires some teacher instruction or explanation. Published by National Geographic Kids, this text can be used during a unit on the human body. Students can use it for reference material or the class can focus on certain sections together.

Social Studies

Social Studies is a field of study aimed to help students comprehend society and the effect of people on the world. Topics covered by a social studies curriculum might include immigration, ancient civilizations, geography, the economy, and foreign policy. At the elementary school level, social studies generally focuses first on the local community and family.  When selecting books for my classroom, I want to look for books with author credibility and accurate information, but the text features should also be appealing to young students. I want the format of the text to be easy to follow, and the language used in the text to be at a level my students can understand.  A classroom library should be filled with topics that students are familiar with, such as past wars and famous people, but it is also good to incorporate some topics that might be new to students. I would love to be able to base various hands-on projects with my students off of books in this genre. This would help students gain more comprehension for what they are reading, and I think there are so many interesting books that can be used to introduce a new topic.

Some of my favorite book choices:

I Have A Dream....
By: Kadir Nelson

•   King, M. L., & Nelson, K. (2012). I have a dream. New York, NY: Schwartz & Wade Books.

Interest Level: K-3
Grade Level: 8
Lexile: 1130
Guided Reading: Q

 
Martin Luther King, Jr.'s speech is written out with beautiful pictures for students at an elementary level to enjoy. Many students may never otherwise be given an opportunity to read Dr. King's speech. It is a positive and inspiring book. I Have A Dream would be a great book to incorporate into a unit on Black History Month, or even just a unit on Martin Luther King, Jr. The book has won the Coretta Scott King award, which is given annually to African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values.


About the Coretta Scott King Award





882 1/2 Amazing Answers To Your Questions About the Titanic
By: Hugh Brewster

Brewster, H., & Coulter, L. (1998). 882 1/2 amazing answers to your questions about the titanic. New York, NY: Scholastic.

Interest Level: 4-8
Grade Level: 5
Lexile: 1050
Guided Reading: Not available
 

The sinking of The Titanic left people with many fascinating questions. This book is the heart-stopping real story of the legendary ship, with answers to the many questions following the sinking of the ship. The text features in this book make it easy to navigate through all of the information. Each question is in bold print and numbered, and throughout the text are many real-life images that give credibility to the source. The index at the back makes it easy for students to quickly look up facts, and the interactive feature of a True/False quiz helps engage readers. The Titanic is a major event in history that I find interesting, and I would love to have my students use different texts to create a timeline of the night on which the ship sunk. As a class, we could use this book to discuss what might have caused the ship to sink, and how the event affected the future.