Here are a few of my favorite math picture books / readalouds for place value, numbers, & operations. Most of my posts on teaching specific topics include relevant books but some teachers/parents have asked for recommended books to be listed in one place. Links on titles will take you to their listing on Amazon.
For math picture books covering geometry and measurement concepts please see this post.
Place Value Picture Books
Place Value is a funny story of monkeys who must get the amounts in the recipe correct to make the biggest banana cupcake ever.
Sir Cumference and All the Kings Tens introduces place value to the tens, hundreds, and thousands with a story about grouping guests for a royal celebration. There are nine other books in the Sir Cumference series as well. I like them because even very young students enjoy the stories and pick up on math vocabulary along the way, but they can also be used as a springboard for discussion of more advanced math concepts. For this reason I have used them with great success in multiage classes and math camps.
How Much is a Million? is an oldie but goodie that helps kids understand how big a million is.
Ready to go bigger than millions? Millions, Billions and Trillions and A Hundred Billion Trillion Stars are both fantastic books for understanding large numbers. A Hundred Billion Trillion Stars was a winner of the Mathical Prize. I love the connection between nature, science, and math.
Concept of Zero Picture Books
A Place for Zero. This is the story of Zero’s adventure meeting Count Infinity, King Multiplus, and Queen Addeleine as he tries to find his place in the number system. It addresses place value and operations with zero. Like the Sir Cumference books, young children enjoy the story and pick up on some of the concepts while older kids can understand at a deeper level. I have found this book really sparks students’ imaginations. After I read it to students at a K-5 summer math camp they had great fun designing their own number people and making up stories set in Number Land.
Another option for teaching about zero is Zero the Hero. According to the author herself, “Zero the Hero subtly teaches place-holding and arithmetic operations like addition and subtraction. It touches on stuff like rounding up and down, even and odd numbers–and the fact that the number eight looks like a snowman. But all of that is secondary. I just hope it’s a fun story that you and your family or students enjoy!”
Equality and Comparing Numbers
Equal Shmequal is the story of Mouse and her friends using math to figure out how to make equal teams for a game of tug of war.
Addition and Subtraction
Arithemechicks Add Up and Arithemechicks Take Away are fun stories about ten math loving chicks and their mouse friend. These are fantastic for younger students to see addition and subtraction demonstrated.
The Math is CATegorical series offers The Mission of Addition and The Action of Subtraction. Both are rhyming cartoon style books that introduce the operations in a humorous way.
The series Math Fun has books for every operation. These include If You Were a Plus Sign and If You Were a Minus Sign. They are great for introducing word problems and inspiring students to create their own.
Multiplication
Anno’s Mysterious Multiplying Jar
Amanda Bean’s Amazing Dream is from Marilyn Burns Brainy Day Books and includes suggested math activities from Marilyn Burns (one of my favorite math gurus.) The story shows students that multiplication is a faster way to add the same number.
The King’s Chessboard is not only a math story but was declared A Notable Children’s Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies and Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children. It demonstrates the power of doubling.
Introducing Division
One Hundred Hungry Ants and Remainder of One are rhyming books that introduce the concept of division and division with remainders. The first has ants dividng into different groups as they try to quickly get to a picnic, and the second is a story of an ant trying to divide the bug army into equal lines of marchers.
The Doorbell Rang is another fun story for introducing division. A grandma makes cookies for her grandchildren which must be divided again and again as more friends come to the door. Many teachers introduce this book by giving children Cookie Crisp cereal to divide into groups. (see my post Introducing Division for more resources for using this book.)
Fraction Operations
Multiplying Menace: The Revenge of Rumpelstiltskin. This book is great for upper elementary students. It explores through a fun story the differences between multiplying with whole numbers and with fractions. (There is also a sequel, The Multiplying Menace Divides.)
Do you have other favorite math picture books for place value and operations? Please add them in the comments below!
