Jun 24, 2013

On the Scale, a Weighty Tale

On the Scale, a Weighty Tale  (CAN, JP, US, INT)

Written by: Brian P Cleary 

Illustrated by: Brian Gable

Published by: Millbrook Press

Published:  August 2010

Ages: 4+



I mentioned earlier in June that my son is really interested in math so I am looking for simple math concept books that are also easy for him to read. The Math is Categorical series has these so it hits everything I want for an early reader.

The series includes books on width/length, addition, subtraction, and money. Upcoming titles include ones on fractions and time. All titles include silly cats and easy-to-remember rhymes. 

This book focuses on weights and measures. What I didn't realize (*bangs head against wall*) that despite the Canadian illustrator, this book is about US weights and measures. I feel like a complete dolt for not realizing. I read the book with my kids but opened up a lot of questions that I couldn't answer, such as those about ounces (I know about fluid ounces from baking conversions, so 1fl oz is about 30mL but no idea how many grams!) Plus the ton included in the book is a short ton, so it says it is 2000 pounds, rather than it being a tonne of 1000 kilograms. Ounces and pounds never show up in Japan, and rarely in Canada anymore, so I hadn't planned on teaching these. Oh well, have to be adaptable, right? 

The non-US Imperial rhymes are great even if you are using metric (Weighing things is how we find/ the heaviness of stuff/a soccer ball, grandma's shawl/and bags of pillow fluff) and the concepts are easy to understand with the illustrations. This would be a great book for US residents or expats- but I wish they had a metric version too! I will be checking out other books in this series, maybe skipping length and width as I bet they will focus on inches and yards rather than the metric measures.

This post is for Nonfiction Monday, hosted this week by Playing By The Book.

2 comments:

  1. As we use both in the UK this might work for us - am definitely interested to hear about an easy reader series which focuses on maths.

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  2. An easy reader series with math topics? That's a great idea! Sorry they don't have a metric version.

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