The History of Counting Ages 9-12

The History of Counting

By Denise Schmandt-Besserat, Schmandt-Besserat, Michael Hays, Hays

Published by Hi Marketing, 2000

ISBN 0688141188, 9780688141189

48 pages

Gr 3-5, Ages 9, 10, 11,12-One strength of this title is the ...... cultural context into which the information has been placed so that children will understand not only how numbering and counting have evolved over time but also why. Some of the phrasing and ... more » several of the cultural examples are sophisticated but for the most part the information has been well adapted to a young audience. The book begins with a brief introduction that defines counting and numbers and then moves on to a historical overview. Hays' attractive paintings, done in acrylic on linen, successfully interpret the concepts explained in the text. It would be a shame if older children dismissed this book because of its picture-book format, since they are unlikely to encounter a better explanation of the subject. There are some fine older, out-of-print books that convey much of the same information, but nothing in recent memory explains the topic quite so well.-Linda Greengrass, Bank Street College Library, New York City

Cahners Business Information (c) 1999
From Scientific American
When we count, we say "one, two, three ... " but it is possible to count without using numbers at all. Perhaps instead we could just point to different parts of our body to represent varying amounts. Pointing to our left shoulder would mean nine, while pointing to our right eye would mean 15. This type of body counting is how the Paiela, the people of the highlands of Papua New Guinea, count. They have no special words for numbers. Another people, the Veddas of Sri Lanka, also count without numbers. They pile up pebbles to represent the objects: one pebble for each object. They have a few special counting words meaning things such as "a single," "a couple," "another one" and "many." In this book, author Schmandt-Besserat draws from her background as an archaeologist and takes us through the early counting techniques of the ancient Middle East to witness the evolution of our modern-day method. Try your hand at counting the way the ancient Sumerians did and experience a world without zero. Try to count like the ancient Greeks and learn the 27 letters of their alphabet that they used as numerals. After short experiments with these techniques, the advantages of the modern system become clear. You'll never look at numbers in quite the same way again.
REVIEW THE NEW YORK TIMES

12 Ways to Get to 11 Ages 2-8

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 __ 12 What happened to 11?

Is it in the magician's hat? Maybe it's in the mailbox or hiding in the jack-o'-lantern? Don't forget to look in the barnyard where the hen awaits the arrival of her new little chicks. Could that be where eleven went?

Eve Merriam and Bernie Karlin take young readers on a counting adventure as they demonstrate twelve witty and imaginative ways to get to eleven.

Subjects

Addition/ Juvenile literatur, Counting/ Juvenile literature, Eleven (The number)

12 Ways to Get to 11

By Eve Merriam

Illustrated by Bernie Karlin

Published by Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, 1996

ISBN 0689808925, 9780689808920

40 pages Ages 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

From Publishers Weekly
Lively combinations of items add up to 11 in what PW called "a counting book with an innovative twist." Ages 2-6.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
From the late poet, a whimsical exploration of enumeration. On each colorful spread, like and dissimilar--but somehow related--objects total 11: ``Out of the magician's hat: four banners, five rabbits, a pitcher of water, and a bouquet of flowers''; or, ``Go past four corners and two traffic lights, then past the house with two chimneys and the garage with two cars and a bicycle. Now look, you're at Eleventh Street''; and, more obscurely since the first item is made known only by its absence, ``Six bites, a core, a stem, and three apple seeds.'' Karlin's cheerful collages feature light, bright colors and bold designs incorporating a clean, weighty sans-serif type. An attractive book that invites the logical investigation of more concepts than most counting books. (Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From One to One Hundred Ages 6-7

In this ingenious counting book, more than 2,500 items are imaginatively arranged in a dazzling display of detail, color, and inventiveness.
From One to One Hundred

By Teri Sloat

Contributor Teri Sloat

Edition: illustrated, reprint

Published by Puffin Books, 1995

ISBN 0140556435, 9780140556438

32 pages Ages 6-7

An equally delightful companion to Sloat ...

...'s first book, From Letter to Letter (1989), with a full page for each number up to ten and double spreads for 20, 30, etc. to 100. A picture key indicates what items can be found in the designated ... more » quantity: e.g., 30 dinosaur bones (arranged to form the numerals), dinosaurs, their eggs, paint pots used by an artist creating a dinosaur mural, and more. Time appealingly rendered scenes are nicely varied, and cleverly devised for subject interest as well as number inclusion. One of the best counting books to come along in a while.

Kirkus Reviews Copyright (c) VNU Business Media, Inc.

The Wright 3 Ages 8-14

The Wright 3

By Blue Balliett, Brett Helquist

Illustrated by Brett Helquist

Edition: illustrated

Published by Scholastic Press, 2006

ISBN 0439693675, 9780439693677

318 pages

When the Robie House is marked for demolition, Petra, Calder, and Tommy take action to save the historic landmark, yet ghostly sounds and moving shadows from within make the three friends think that there may be something strange about the special house and so begin to gather additional evidence with their sleuthing skills. 175,000 first printing.
Reviews
Gr 5-8- Ages 11, 12, 13, 14. With her distinct style, Balliett returns to Chicago and the detective work of Calder and Petra, sixth graders at the University School. This time they are joined by Tommy, Calder's former best friend who had moved away for a year. In this architectural mystery, destruction threatens Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House, and the Wright 3, as the protagonists call themselves, piece together the puzzle that will lead to the building's rescue. While friction initially mars the three-sided friendship, Petra, Calder, and Tommy soon appreciate their individual roles in solving the mystery. Egged on by their unconventional teacher, the Wright 3 utilize Calder's geometric brain, Petra's writing and observing skills, and Tommy's uncanny findings to research and investigate the cryptic messages that Robie House seems to send in its own defense. Balliett elegantly wraps factual information on the building into a dreamy, Debussy sort of mystery in which seemingly random connections in everyday life uncover the hidden enigmas of Robie House and Wright himself. Balliett's atmospheric writing encourages readers to make their own journeys of discovery into art and architecture, creating a mystery subgenre that is as unique as it is compelling. While the book is not perfect-the final chapters jerk rather than flow, and the Wright 3's transition from awkward tolerance to a tightly knit cadre is nothing out of the ordinary-the mystery itself and the perfectly realized setting make this an essential purchase.-Caitlin Augusta, The Darien Library, CT Reed Business Information (c) 2006

The determined sleuths from Balliett's fine first novel, Chasing Vermeer (2004),
return in another artful mystery, centered on one of Chicago's architectural treasures. As sixth grade wanes, the vibrant Ms. Hussey reveals heartbreaking news: Because of the extraordinary costs of maintenance and repair, Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House, a city icon since 1910, will be dismantled in sections and donated to four museums. While the class's spirited campaign to save the building ends with the school year, the passionately curious Petra and Calder press on, abetted by Calder's good friend Tommy, just back from a traumatic year away. The shifting third-person narrative effectively captures the children's tense struggle to transform from duo to trio, and transmits their shared delight in puzzling, excavating and thinking deeply, creating a similarly heightened alertness in the reader. The "Wright 3" take increasingly bold risks to recover a stolen, priceless jade fish (Wright's own lost talisman) and save the Robie House. Many of the elements that made Chasing Vermeer such a success reappear here, from the culturally rich setting, to Calder's pentominoes (now three-dimensional), to Helquist's intriguing illustrations (not seen in their final state). Another tour de force blending art, math, philosophy, history and literature. (author's note) (Fiction. 8, 9 ,10,11, 12)
Kirkus Reviews Copyright (c) VNU Business Media, Inc.