At the 2017 National Math Festival in Washington, D.C., Mathical Book Prize selection committee member Dr. Herbert Ginsburg of Teachers College, Columbia University, spoke to parents and educators about how to find and read math storybooks with young children. You can watch Dr. Ginsburg’s talk below!
Good math storybooks for young children have several essential characteristics, ranging from artistic merit to the seamless integration of mathematical ideas, plot, and illustrations. This session will review and illustrate these important features. Then the session will examine ways to stimulate mathematical interest, thinking, and learning, as adult and child read from both explicit math and ordinary (non-explicit math) storybooks.
Dr. Herbert Ginsburg – How to Find Good Math Storybooks and Read Them with Your Children
Additional Resources: The “Math Picture Book Analysis Guide” for parents that Dr. Ginsburg talks about in the video above can be downloaded as a PDF from the Development and Research in Early Math Education (DREME) website.
Dr. Herbert Ginsburg is the Jacob H. Schiff Foundations Professor of Psychology & Education at Teachers College, Columbia University. He has conducted basic research on the development of mathematical thinking, with particular attention to young children, disadvantaged populations, and cultural similarities and differences. He has drawn on contemporary research to create mathematics activities (Big Math for Little Kids) and storybooks for young children, tests of mathematical thinking, and video workshops to enhance teachers’ understanding of students’ mathematics learning. He is now developing materials designed to help teachers and parents engage in mathematical book reading with their children.