[.ca] The Grapes of Math (ISBN 043921033X)

From Amazon.com:
How is it possible to count a complicated pattern of strawberry seeds or grapes on a vine or camel humps--in a blink of an eye? If children can open their minds to new ways of perceiving math, anything is possible! Greg Tang shows readers creative ways to use patterns and combinations of numbers to solve math puzzles quickly and effectively. Rather than laboriously counting 24 mushroom slices on a pizza, Tang suggests: "Let me give you some advice, / Just do half and count twice." And in adding the number of dots on a fan: "Instead of seeing groups of threes, / Count by fives and it's a breeze!" Every two-page spread features cheerful computer-generated art by Harry Briggs, depicting rows of camels, beaches full of seashells, and vines laden with grapes. Tang's witty little accompanying verses tickle the fancy even as they challenge the mind. Guided by hints in the verses, readers find solutions to each math riddle, by looking "askew" to find a pattern, subtracting in order to add, or adding numbers that have easy sums before clustering them to add in groups. Solutions and explanations are provided in the back of the book. With a little creativity and common sense, as opposed to formulas and memorization, Tang believes that all kids can do well in math--and have fun while they're at it. Readers of The Grapes of Math are already ahead of the game. (Ages 6 to 10) --Emilie Coulter

The Grapes of Math: A New Way of Counting:
I am currently a student at Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona. I read this book to a third grade student and she loved it! The Grapes of Math has wonderful bright colored pictures that are great for kids as well as rhyming which is fun for them. Each page in the book gives different math problems dealing with animals, food, and everyday objects that make it easier for kids to relate to. The book helps gives students hints on different ways of counting.Instead of counting items one by one, the book gives examples of how to group and pair items together. The pictures in the book helped my student to visualize the groupings and it made it much easier for her to figure out the problems in the book. What is also great about this book is that at the end of the book, the author gave the answers to the math problems in the book and ways to explain how to do them. I reccommed this book for elementary age students.

Mind-Opening Math, review by: Pima Community College student:
This is a great book! The illustrations are eye-catching and vibrant! The rhyming riddles are very clever! Together, the great illustrations and poetic riddles make for a very interesting and fun math book! It is a great book for introducing multiplication to children or for practicing the multiplication skills they already have. It also encourages children to "stretch" their minds and try a whole new approach to problem solving. Rather than counting objects one-by-one, the book urges children to look for patterns and count by easy to handle groups. There are even clearly explained answers in the back, in case you have a hard time figuring it out on your own. I read this book to a third-grader, who struggles in math and is just being introduced to multiplication. For the first couple of riddles he kept trying to count one-by-one and the answers in the back were helpful in showing him a different approach. After awhile he started finding patterns on his own. Once he realized he was "getting the hang of it," his face lit up, he got really excited, and wanted to try some more riddles. By the end of the book he was approaching problem solving in a whole new way and he was really proud of himself! I highly recommend this book!

MAT 146 Review:
I am a Pima College student, majoring in Elementary Education. I read The Grapes of Math, to a resource room class, during their math hour. The students in the class were grade first through fifth. The kids thought that the riddles were silly, but did not understand that they were supposed to answer the riddles. Most of the students were not familiar with the math terms that were used in the book, and I had to explain the vocab to them for each riddle. I really enjoyed the book, but I would recommend that it be used for 5th or 6th grade classrooms.

Mind - Opening Math:
This is a great book! The illustrations are vibrant, eye-catching, and really appealing! The rhyming riddles are clever and challenging! The poetic wording of the riddles and the great illustrations make this math book fun and interesting. This book truly is the "mind-stretching" book it claims to be. It does a great job of getting kids to open their minds and approach problem solving in a whole new way. They are encouraged to move beyond simply counting one-by-one and try finding patterns to count by. It is useful for introducing the concept of multiplication to them or for them to practice multiplication skills they already have. I read this book to a third grader, who is just being introduced to multiplication. At first, he had a hard time with the riddles, wanted to count one-by-one, and didn't understand how tolook for patterns. Going over the solutions in the back helped him understand how he could have approached the riddle. After awhile, he started approaching the riddles differently and stopped trying to count everything one-by-one. When he finally got the hang of it, he was really excited. His face lit up in a big smile and he couldn't wait to try more riddles. By the end of the book he really was approaching problem solving in a new way. This was quite an accomplishment for a kid who struggles with math! I highly recommend this book!

MAT 146 Review:
(...) I read The Grapes of Math to a resource room class, during their math hour. The kids thought that the riddles were silly, but did not really understand the concept, that the riddles had answers to them. There were grade levels first through fifth in the class. I think that the kids would have enjoyed the book more if they were up to speed with the math terms in the book. When I was reading the book, I had to stop and explain the math vocabulary for reach riddle. I enjoyed the book, but I would use it for an older set of students.