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...
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...
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...
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 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 much is a million? /
Schwartz, David M.
Paper Book
"A jubilant, original picture book." --Booklist (starred review) Ever wonder just what a million of something means? How about a billion? Or a trillion? Marvelosissimo the mathematical magician can teach you! How Much Is a Million? knocks complex numbers down to size in a fun,...
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...
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...
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 grain of rice : a mathematical folktale
Demi.
Paper Book
Long ago in India, there lived a raja who believed that he was wise and fair. But every year he kept nearly all of the people's rice for himself. Then when famine came, the raja refused to share the rice, and the people went hungry. Then a village girl named Rani devises a clever plan. She does a...
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 follow up to Over and Under the Snow and Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt, this time focusing on the rich, interconnected ecosystem of a mountain pond. As parent and child launch a canoe from the muddy shore and paddle through water lilies, they see...
Rooster's off to see the world /
Carle, Eric
Paper Book
"One fine morning, a rooster decided he wanted to travel." In 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 is joined by two cats, three frogs, four turtles...
Rosie's walk
Hutchins, Pat
Paper Book
The Fox is after Rosie, but Rosie doesn't know it. Unwittingly, she leads him into one disaster after the other, each funnier than the last. To enjoy Rosie's walk as much as Rosie does, just look inside!
Sir Cumference and the first round table : a math adventure
Neuschwander, Cindy.
Paper Book
Join Sir Cumference, Lady Di of Ameter, and their son Radius for wordplay, puns, and problem solving in this geometry-packed math adventure. King Arthur was a good ruler, but now he needs a good ruler. What would you do if the neighboring kingdom were threatening war? Naturally,...
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...

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