Here, each month we’ll suggest some fascinating and fun BOOKS, VIDEOS and INTERESTING FACTS about numbers, some old, some new. A few are selected especially for younger readers but most should interest and intrigue anyone curious about the wonders of numbers.
BUT FIRST, if you, your pupils or children have ever struggled with numbers, a most encouraging video...
For older MathVenturers, Parents and Teachers who wish to give or receive encouragement (and who doesn't at some stage or other), here’s an in-depth video on how brains GROW when we struggle with a topic - a very encouraging talk by Stanford professor, Jo Boaler.
How you can be good at math, and other surprising facts about learning | Jo Boaler | TEDxStanford
Something for EVERYONE with an interest in Maths
No matter at what stage you find yourself, from 6th Grade to Graduate, this magical mix of games, puzzles, paradoxes and riddles will (as it says on the cover) 'tease, tantalize, delight and keep you on your toes'.
ISBN 9781846683466
Non-picture books with a mathematical theme for older readers , including adventure stories, books of facts, figures and fascinating insights.
And we've sneaked in one of our own, but you might expect that because, maybe like other maths teachers you might know, at times we can be a bit sneaky when it comes to numbers.
MathVenturers, if you like a good read about a perilous expedition across the high seas and into the darkest jungle - and don't mind a bit of maths - then try this rippin' yarn of a MathVenture.
When the intrepid explorer Mad Maps Mitchell decides to lead an expedition to the Numba Jungle (the source of every whole number you've ever come across in your lessons) he - of course - expects his perfect plan to go, well, perfectly. He just knows he will lead his party of 36 elite cartographers to glory. However, and these weren't in the perfect plan, not before they come face to face with The Orbs of Doom, The Hitherum-Ditherum, The Terrible Tanglewood and The Vortex of Infinity. "No-one survives The Vortex of Infinity".
Interwoven within the story's cliff-hangers and a few scary scenes, there's a bit of mathematics, but only a bit (it's not that scary) intended to engage and inspire even the least confident pupil, yet amaze and intrigue the more able with number tips, magic tricks and quirky questions.
Oh, and if you don't yet believe that numbers grow on trees, shame on you. This book will set you right.
ISBN 978 1 739 38280-3
A book for ALL AGES of MathVenturers.
Perfect numbers to narcissistic numbers, and much more. You may not have realised it but many of the writers of the Simpsons have smuggled mathematical jokes into their cartoons , including some quite advanced stuff that older readers will enjoy.
Next time you watch the cartoon, take a more careful look at what’s written on Bart's and Lisa’s blackboards and see if you can spot any mathematical jokes.
Simon Singh’s book is available from local bookshops and Amazon for around £10 for the paperback.
ISBN 9781408843734
BELOW, we list books and videos to intrigue, entertain and encourage younger readers. But most of all we've chosen books where the authors seek to make mathematics fun.
PRIMARY AND EARLY SECONDARY MATHVENTURERS
Kjartan Poskitt's fun and friendly approach to arithmetic will fill in many gaps for the primary pupil and newcomers to secondary school to enrich their understanding and give them a boost on their journey to and throughout secondary school.
Indeed, Poskitt's tip, page 58, could be the most important change a struggler with sums can make to unlock the secret to feeling sufficiently confident to progress and discover the real fun of mathematics, impress their parents and maybe impress their teachers.
Poskitt writes:
“Do yourself a big favour!
Even if times tables drive you mad,
LEARN THEM.”
Whether befuddled and losing confidence or a whizz at maths, pupils aged 9 and above should benefit greatly from the arithmetic insights in The Secrets of Sums.
ISBN 978-1-407147-23-9
Author Gareth Moore, illustrator Chris Dickason and Michael O'Mara Books have compiled a fun series of Clever Kids books to help mainly primary pupils to while away the time with arithmetic and pictorial conundrums and brain-stretching puzzles.
Some are written with specific age-ranges in mind for parents/teachers to choose. All are fun, challenging and reasonably-priced.
Books in the series include:
978-1780555409 Maths Games for Clever Kids®
9781780552491 Brain Games for Clever Kids®
9781780554723 Brain Gaming for Clever Kids®
9781780555621 Times Tables Games for Clever Kids®
9781780555935 10-Minute Brain Games for Clever Kids®
FOR ALL YOUNG MATHVENTURERS, particularly those who (sometimes) get the wrong answers.
Believe it or not, with maths problems, it's REALLY GOOD to get things wrong, because...
YOUR BRAIN will G - R - O - W:
- There is no such thing as a maths person - anyone can learn mathematics to pretty high levels.
- Mistakes, struggle and challenge are the most important times for brain growth.
- Speed is unimportant in mathematics. If you haven't got it now, you just don't get it YET.
- It’s a myth that some people can’t do maths (or any other subject for that matter).
- To learn why it's never wrong to get things wrong, take a look at this 3-minute video "Mistakes are Powerful" from YouCubed. (After you've viewed it, CLICK the LEFT arrow at the top of the video page to return to MathVenturers.)
- Mistakes are Powerful (WIM 3 Version) - YouCubed
- Let’s grow our brains.
YOUNGER MATHVENTURERS
What better read for younger MathVenturers than a colourfully illustrated book called Maths Adventures? A compilation of four stories by William Potter, which may also be bought as separate books.
Readers are taken on four adventures from lost cities to deep space, during which they are invited to solve clues involving primes and square numbers, to match decimals with fractions, to plot co-ordinates and read charts. The illustrations by Rayanne Vieira are a joy. Complete with an Answers section for anyone stuck on the clues, this book should interest readers aged seven to early teens.
ISBN 978-1788286367
FOR VERY YOUNG MATHVENTURERS
Author Cindy Neuschwander has written a series of tales featuring the gallant knight (maybe not?) Sir Cumference, his son Radius, castles, dragons and magic potions that parents can read to the very young and encourage early primary children to practice their reading.
While they are engaging adventures in themselves, the Sir Cumference stories weave simple everyday mathematical terms and the occasional riddle into each tale. Books in the series cover such topics as circles, angles, fractions, decimals and many more.
Large colourful illustrations by Wayne Geehan should delight readers with their detail and promote further parent/child discussion.
The Dragon of Pi (General interest - Knights and Ladies, dragons, potions and... a cat. Mathematical interest - circular objects, radius and pi.)
ISBN 9781570911644
'EVERYONE STUDYING MATHS NEEDS THIS BOOK'
So says the blurb on the back of this book. And I tend to agree. Usborne have produced a colourful guide to over 500 key mathematical concepts. Whatever stage you are at, whether pupil or teacher, this book is a ready reference to what you've learnt, perhaps forgotten or may need to brush up on. Ideal for exam revision, certainly up to GCSE level and beyond.
Maths teachers - One to keep on your desk. You'll probably use it every day.
ISBN 978074 608052
