If You Were a Plus Sign

by Trisha Speed Shaskan, Francesca Carabelli (Illustrator)

Overview

What could you do if you were a plus sign? You could add things together. You could add people and animals. You could add up and down or side to side. Discover even more answers in this installment of the bestselling MATH FUN series by Trisha Speed Shaskan! With creative examples, easy-to-understand text, and engaging art, these entertaining and educational picture books books are perfect for young math lovers to read aloud or read alone.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781404847859
Publisher:	Capstone
Publication date:	09/01/2008
Series:	Math Fun
Pages:	24
Product dimensions:	8.60(w) x 10.70(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	570L (what's this?)
Age Range:	7 - 9 Years

About the Author

When Trisha Speed Shaskan was a girl, she wanted to become a superhero. Her mother gave her a Wonder Woman costume. Her dad crafted her a tiara and bracelets out of metal to match. Trisha imagined she could fight evil, fly an invisible airplane, and get anyone to tell the truth. While she didn’t grow up to be Wonder Woman, she still uses her imagination to write stories and to teach creative writing. Trisha has taught creative writing to children and adults for thirteen years. She has published 26 books for children, and more are forthcoming. She has an MFA in creative writing from Minnesota State University, Mankato. Trisha currently lives in Minneapolis with her husband, Stephen, and their cat, Eartha, named after Eartha Kitt, famous for her role as Catwoman.

I always thought of books like a treasure chest, and the illustrations, like windows to look inside. My mother says, I was born with a pencil in hand...my left hand. I drew before I was able to speak. When I was eight years old, we moved into a new home, a big one. Our hobbies-room in this new home was so white that I had an idea. I decided to make it more colorful and I filled the walls with my characters. The ceiling was the only place that was not touched by my pencils. This was the beginning of my artist's freelance career. Since then, my funny characters have stayed with me everywhere, at grade school first, then at University in Rome where I studied Art and Literature. Now, the characters share the attic where I work, with me and my sweet black dog, Luna.

Editorial Reviews

Following the same format as the Word Fun series, appealing illustrations and simple passages take the reader from simple addition of 1 bear + 1 bear = 2 bears to presenting the idea of adding multiple, fun items of 8 red bracelets on one arm and 8 pink bracelets on the other = 16 bracelets. Concludes with a brief glossary, more books to read, web sites, and an index.

Teacher Librarian

Simple text and great illustrations make this book a great resource in the classroom. Showing plus telling students how to write math problems gives them a clearer picture of math. Very well done- would recommend the entire series for all elementary schools.

Fort Street Elementary

Gr 2-4

These attention-grabbing books will work in the right setting. Each spread describes one characteristic of the concept. Unfortunately, the texts do not simplify the topics enough for newcomers to the math. For example, Fraction states, "If you were a fraction, you could be divided more than once. You would be one unit subdivided into equal parts." The cheerful acrylic illustrations explain the ideas well, and the cartoon creatures performing fun activities will appeal to children. There are a couple of quirky spots-in Odd, the number 1 is shown standing between 6 and 8, holding up an "odd" sign, for example. These titles are not for struggling students, but they will succeed as reinforcement.

School Library Journal