Math for Kids: Children's Books that Incorporate Math in Reading

Did you know how well children do math at the start of kindergarten predicts how well they will do in 3rd grade and high school? In addition, it also predicts how well they'll doing in reading.

These books incorporate math in reading and are available at the Sussex County Library System.

Updated May 29, 2024
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1 big salad
Medina, Juana
Paper Book
Juana Medina's ingenious illustrations nearly pop off the page in her new counting book, ONE BIG SALAD. One avocado deer saunters across the spread, two radish mice scurry by, until finally ten clementine kitties prance onto the scene - all of the ingredients in one big salad! Medina's...
Albert is not scared
May, Eleanor.
Paper Book
Alexander, who used to be rich last Sunday
Viorst, Judith.
Paper Book
Anthony has two dollars and three quarters and one dime and seven nickels and eighteen pennies. Nicholas has one dollar and two quarters and five dimes and five nickels and thirteen pennies. Alexander has...bus tokens. And even when he's rich, pretty soon all he has is bus tokens. ...
Bedtime math
Overdeck, Laura
Paper Book
Bedtime Math wants to change the way we introduce math to children: to make math a fun part of kids' everyday lives. We all know it's wonderful to read bedtime stories to kids, but what about doing math? Many generations of Americans are uncomfortable with math and...
Bedtime math 2 : this time it's personal
Overdeck, Laura
Paper Book
"We want kids to feel about math the way they feel about dessert after dinner." --Laura Overdeck, Time magazine Our mission: to make math a fun part of kids' everyday lives. In, Bedtime Math: This Time It's Personal, families will find fun, mischief-making math...
Bedtime math. The truth comes out
Overdeck, Laura
Paper Book
"We want kids to feel about math the way they feel about dessert after dinner." --Laura Overdeck, Time magazine Our mission: to make math a fun part of kids' everyday lives. When is the last time you gave your child a math problem just for fun? Yesterday? Last year?...
The boy who loved math : the improbably life of Paul Erdos
Heiligman, Deborah.
Paper Book
Most people think of mathematicians as solitary, working away in isolation. And, it's true, many of them do. But Paul Erdos never followed the usual path. At the age of four, he could ask you when you were born and then calculate the number of seconds you had been alive in his head. But he didn't...
The doorbell rang /
Hutchins, Pat,
Paper Book
This enjoyable read-aloud picture book about friendship, sharing, and cookies can also be used to introduce basic math concepts to young children. "Refreshing, enjoyable, and unpredictable."--School Library Journal Each ring of the doorbell brings more friends to share the delicious...
Feast for 10
Falwell, Cathryn.
Paper Book
Enjoy this classic counting book and lively read-aloud featuring a family shopping for food, preparing dinner, and enjoying a meal together. Count from one to ten--then count again! What does it take to make a feast for ten hungry people? Shopping, cooking, setting the table-...
The grapes of math : mind stretching math riddles
Tang, Greg.
Paper Book
This innovative and delightful book challenges children -- and parents -- to open their minds and solve problems in new and unexpected ways. By looking for patterns, symmetries, and familiar number combinations displayed within eye-catching pictures, math will become easier and quicker -- and much...
The greedy triangle
Burns, Marilyn
Paper Book
In this introduction to polygons, a triangle convinces a shapeshifter to make him a quadrilateral and later a pentagon, but discovers that where angles and sides are concerned, more isn't always better.
The growing story
Krauss, Ruth.
Paper Book
From this simple beginning grows a story that celebrates those little changes that tell us we're growing up! This Ruth Krauss classic enchanted young readers when it was first published in 1947. Now it blooms again with lush illustrations by one of the world's best-loved illustrators: Helen...
Have you seen my monster?
Light, Steve
Paper Book
In a follow-up to Steve Light's highly praised Have You Seen My Dragon?, the county fair is filled with shapes--and somewhere among them a monster is waiting to be found. A little girl gallivants through a county fair, searching for her furry friend. Readers will surely...
How many jelly beans?
Menotti, Andrea.
Paper Book
How many jelly beans are enough? How many are too many? Aiden and Emma can't decide. Is 10 enough? How about 1,000? That's a lot of jelly beans. But eaten over a whole year, it's only two or three a day. This giant picture book offers kids a fun and easy way to understand large numbers. Starting...
How much is a million? /
Schwartz, David M.
Paper Book
Text and pictures try to make possible the conceptualization of a million, a billion, and a trillion.
Inside, outside, upside down /
Berenstain, Stan,
Paper Book
A bear explores a carton on a truck and gets carried away. By the time he has returned, the reader will be exposed to the concepts of "inside, outside, upside down."   Bright and Early Books are perfect for beginning beginner readers! Launched by Dr. Seuss in 1968 with The...
Lemonade in winter : a book about two kids counting money
Jenkins, Emily
Paper Book
A lemonade stand in winter? Yes, that's exactly what Pauline and John-John intend to have, selling lemonade and limeade--and also lemon-limeade. With a catchy refrain (Lemon lemon LIME, Lemon LIMEADE! Lemon lemon LIME, Lemon LEMONADE!), plus simple math concepts throughout, here is a read...
The lemonade war
Davies, Jacqueline
Paper Book
Here is a clever blend of humor, math wizardry, and business know-how. As it captures the one-of-a-kind bond between brother and sister, this poignant novel also subtly explores how arguments can escalate beyond anyone's intent. For a full hour, he poured lemonade. The world is a thirsty...
Measuring Penny /
Leedy, Loreen.
Paper Book
Lisa has an important homework assignment--to measure something in several different ways. She has to use standard units like inches and nonstandard units like paper clips to find out height, width, length, weight, volume, temperature, and time. Lisa decides to measure her dog, Penny, and finds...
Monster math
Miranda, Anne.
Paper Book
One little monster waits for the first birthday guest to arrive. . . . There’s a knock on the door, and now there are two! Now three! Now four! The guests keep arriving until fifty partying monsters wreak havoc and Monster Mom decides that enough is enough. The partygoers reluctantly...
Mouse shapes
Walsh, Ellen Stoll.
Paper Book
What can you make with one oval, two circles, and eight triangles? Just ask three clever mice--who even find a funny way to trick a sneaky cat.             Ellen Stoll Walsh once again proves that she's a master of concept books in...
Mystery math : a first book of algebra
Adler, David A.
Paper Book
Boo! There is a mystery behind every door of the creepy haunted house. Luckily, algebra will help you solve each problem. By using simple addition, subtraction, mulitplication, and division, you'll discover that solving math mysteries isn't scary at all -- it's fun!
One big pair of underwear
Gehl, Laura.
Paper Book
Count and share with...underwear! Come along on a zany adventure with hilarious pictures from the New York Times bestselling illustrator of Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site. What's one thing that two bears, three yaks, four goats, and six cats have in common?...
One grain of rice : a mathematical folktale
Demi.
Paper Book
A reward of one grain of rice doubles day by day into millions of grains of rice when a selfish raja is outwitted by a clever village girl.
One hundred hungry ants
Pinczes, Elinor J.
Paper Book
One Hundred Hungry Ants is not only a spirited and whimsical picture book story, it also serves as a fun visual introduction to math. Hi dee ho! It's off to a picnic we go! One hundred very hungry ants hurry to sample the delights of a picnic, but marching in a single file seems too...
Over and under the pond
Messner, Kate
Paper Book
A secret underwater world brought to life: This gorgeous companion to the acclaimed Over and Under the Snow and Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt is an excellent addition to any emerging reader's collection. In Over and Under the Pond...
Rooster's off to see the world /
Carle, Eric,
Paper Book
One fine morning, a rooster decided he wanted to travel. In this mini-book edition, using strikingly designed, colorful collage illustrations and a beguiling simple text, Eric Carle takes his young readers on a trip with the rooster and his companions. As he travels, the rooster...
Rosie's walk
Hutchins, Pat
Paper Book
Simplified Chinese edition of Rosie's Walk. Rosie the chicken takes a stroll around the barn yard, while a fox is stealthily following her. But before he could catch Rosie, the fox is chased away by the bees stirred from the beehives when Rosie walks by oblivious to the danger behind her.
Round is a tortilla : a book of shapes
Thong, Roseanne.
Paper Book
In this lively picture book, children discover a world of shapes all around them: rectangles are ice-cream carts and stone metates, triangles are slices of watermelon and quesadillas. Many of the featured objects are Latino in origin, and all are universal in appeal. With rich,...
Ten black dots /
Crews, Donald
Paper Book
From Donald Crews, the Caldecott Honor artist and award-winning creator of Truck, Freight Train, and many other classic picture books for young children, this picture book is a fun introduction to basic math concepts. What can you do with ten black dots? <...
Two of everything : a Chinese folktale
Hong, Lily Toy.
Paper Book
When old Mr. Haktak digs up a curious brass pot in his garden, he has no idea what use it can be. On his way home, Mr. Haktak decides to carry his coin purse in the mysterious pot. But when Mrs. Haktak's hairpin accidentally slips into the pot and she reaches in to retrieve it, the magic of the...
Yumbo gumbo /
Dawson, Keila V.,
Paper Book
Celebrate diversity, math, and the power of storytelling! Annabelle's grandparents are finally going to teach her how to cook gumbo! But the family can't agree on what type of gumbo to make. They vote for their favorite, but the vote results in a tie. Now what? A playful...

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