I am so excited to have the lovely and talented Layla Henry from Fancy Free in 4th be a guest blogger for Sparkling Recommendations. 

Happy Wednesday!!! This is Layla from Fancy Free in 4th and I am so excited to be a guest blogger for Courtney today sharing my Five Favorite Math Picture Books to use for upper grade classrooms.

#1 Math Curse by Jon Scienzka

   This is my go to Math Mentor text that I always use during the first week of school. I find that kids either LOVE math, because it is easy for them, or they are super intimidated by it.  The Math Curse  helps those students who are a little apprehensive about math see the fun in it... because Math is EVERYWHERE.

#2 How Much is a Million? by David Schwartz

     We start the year off teaching Place Value to the millions. The kids have a HARD time picturing what a million is, because it is such an abstract concept for them.  They either relate the word million to wanting to become a millionaire or to the hyperbole I have a million things to do today. What I love about this book, is that it shows the kids how BIG one million really is.  It transforms the abstract, into a more concrete idea.

#3 One Grain of Rice by Demi

     This might be my favorite math book of all because not only does it teach mathematical concepts, but it also has a wonderful moral in it.  If you've never read this book, it is a mathematical folktale where a selfish (king) raja keeps all the rice to himself during a time of famine.  A clever  girl outwits him with a little bit of math trickery.  There is a great AND free resource online from ... where your students can track the grains of rice from the book. 

#3 Remainder of One  by Elinor J. Pinczes

     I use this book when I introduce division.  It is a great book using ants, arrays and a parade to show dividing different groups up and what remains (poor Joe).  When reading this, I pull out these little ant toys and have the kids use them as math manipulatives.  The students love acting out the book with these ant math manipulatives! Grab the ants here on Amazon to do this fun math-tivity with your class.

#4 Perimeter, Area and Volume  by David Alder

David Alder has several math picture books that I am in love with.  I use this one for our geometry unit. It is an entertaining book that helps go over height, depth and width. Using monsters and movies, the class learn about Perimeter How much fencing do the monsters need to buy to go around their yard?, Area How big is the movie screen? and Volume How much popcorn does a jumbo bag hold? 
    I hope some of these recommendations will help all of you upper grade teachers out there who love using pictures books to engage our students in learning!  Using these, and many other math picture books, have helped engage the students and encourage those students who are a little bit apprehensive about new math concepts.

Hop on over to Jen's blog to read the rest of our list!

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Courtney

I am so excited to be a part of a new group called Books Bloggers Love. I mean this group is PERFECT for me. Each month the 12 of us will share one book we love to share with our students. They will be monthly picks to cater to the upcoming holiday or theme. This month we are are sharing our favorite October Books.

Have you heard of Fish in a Tree? OMG, it is one of those books that just makes you come alive. It makes every teacher have goosebumps. This year Fish in a Tree is the Global Read Aloud book choice for the October Kick Off! You can learn more about how to sign up for the Global Read Aloud Here. It starts October 5th. My class will be joining in. I hope you do too!

 I made this pledge button, because I believe every teacher should have to read this book. Yes, I want you to read it to your students, but YOU NEED TO READ IT LIKE NOW! :) Take the pledge, download this button on your blog, instagram, classroom website, or whatever. By downloading this button, you are helping to spread the word of Teacher Moments and student triumphs. So many teachers make a difference lets continue to share in the glory.

 The Button I made :) 

Download FREEBIE!

 Buy This BOOK! :)

Enter to WIN FISH IN A TREE BELOW:
 

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Courtney