Recommended Books

A Very Improbable Story

Edward Einhorn

Australian Curriculum:  Description

This book is a story centered around probability. Ethan goes about his morning routine while his cat friend “odds” teaches him about the probability of choosing two marbles the same colour from a large collection, two matching socks from a small collection and so on.

Teaching ideas
(1) Discuss the history of probability and the mathematicians Blaise Pascal and Pierre de Fermat; (2) "act out" the probability situations from the story to draw conclusions; (3) conduct similar experiments and record results with and without technologies

Adam Spencer’s Mind-Boggling Maths, Outrageous Puzzles, Enormous Super-Cool Games Book of Numbers and heaps of other fun stuff!

Adam Spencer

Australian Curriculum:  Description

Prep-Sort, describe and name familiar two-dimensional shapes and three-dimensional objects in the environment (ACMMG009); YR1-Recognise and classify familiar two-dimensional shapes and three-dimensional objects using obvious features (ACMMG022); YR2-Describe the features of three-dimensional objects (ACMMG043); YR3-Identify symmetry in the environment (ACMMG066); YR4-Investigate number sequences involving multiples of 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, and 9 (ACMNA074); YR5-Use efficient mental and written strategies and apply appropriate digital technologies to solve problems (ACMNA291); YR6-Construct simple prisms and pyramids (ACMMG140); YR7-Draw different views of prisms and solids formed from combinations of prisms (ACMMG161); YR8-Solve a range of problems involving rates and ratios, with and without digital technologies (ACMNA188); YR9-Express numbers in scientific notation (ACMNA210)

Teaching ideas
Real-world application in this book. Cross-curricular links are strong too, science, humanities, music, HPE etc

A place for zero

Angeline Sparagna LoPresti

Australian Curriculum:  Description

Establish understanding of the language and processes of counting by naming numbers in sequences, initially to and from 20, moving from  any starting point (ACMNA001); Connect number names, numerals and quantities, including zero, initially up to 10 and then beyond (ACMNA002); Yr1-Recognise, model, read, write and order numbers to at least 100. Locate these numbers on a number line (ACMNA013); Yr2-Recognise, model, represent and order numbers to at least 1000 (ACMNA027); Yr3-Recall multiplication facts of two, three, five and ten and related division facts (ACMNA056)

Teaching ideas
Explore adding numbers up to 10 then beyond and up to 900. Explore adding and multiplying by 0. Conduct some experiments with 'numberator' and 'multi-tube'.

One Thing : featuring Charlie and Lola

Lauren Child

Australian Curriculum:  Description

F.Y-Connect number names, numerals and quantities, including zero, initially up to 10 and then beyond (ACMNA002); Yr1-Represent and solve simple addition and subtraction problems using a range of strategies including counting on, partitioning and rearranging parts (ACMNA015); Yr2-Explore the connection between addition and subtraction (ACMNA029); Yr3-Recognise, model, represent and order numbers to at least 10 000 (ACMNA052); Yr3-Tell time to the minute and investigate the relationship between units of time (ACMMG062); Yr4-Recognise, represent and order numbers to at least tens of thousands (ACMNA072); Yr5-Convert between units of time (ACMMG085); Yr6-Select and apply efficient mental and written strategies and appropriate digital technologies to solve problems involving all four operations with whole numbers (ACMNA123)

Teaching ideas
Teach other vocabulary that is often used differently in everyday language such as the examples in the book; e.g. "how about no things" meaning 0 things. Explore time and how long the morning routine takes students in the class. Counting and counting on items.

My Half Day

Doris Fisher and Dani Sneed

Australian Curriculum:  Description

Yr2 – Recognise and interpret common uses of halves, quarters and eighths of shapes and collections (ACMNA033); Yr3 – Model and represent unit fractions including 1/2, 1/4, 1/3, 1/5 and their multiples to a complete whole (ACMNA058)

Teaching ideas
Year 9s could even read this book and be asked to place all fractions mentioned on a number line from smallest to largest. Year 2/3 ideas - have students match the abstract (5/8) to a picture/scenario from the story. Explore and investigate other examples of fractions in the real-world.

Two of Everything

Lily Toy Hong

Australian Curriculum:  Description

Recall multiplication facts of two, three, five and ten and related division facts (ACMNA056)

Teaching ideas
Students investigate other "doubling" scenarios.

Each Orange Had 8 Slices

Paul Giganti Jr

Australian Curriculum:  Description

F.Y – Establish understanding of the language and processes of counting by naming numbers in sequences, initially to and from 20, moving from  any starting point (ACMNA001); F.Y – Represent practical situations to model addition and sharing (ACMNA004); Year 1 – Represent and solve simple addition and subtraction problems using a range of strategies including counting on, partitioning and rearranging parts (ACMNA015); Year 3 – Recall multiplication facts of two, three, five and ten and related division facts (ACMNA056)

Teaching ideas
Build on the concept of counting on, partitioning and part-part-whole with other object sequences.