Here’s something you need to know about Sally (the inspiration for this blog): she was married to a math teacher and her three sons grew up to become math teachers. So I figure it’s only appropriate to include math stories every now and then. Here’s one that will hit the shelves in about 10 days (estimation is a useful math skill!).
Bracelets for Bina’s Brothers
by Rajani LaRocca; illus. by Chaaya Prabhat
32 pages; ages 3-6
Charlesbridge, 2021
theme: math, art, holidays
Bina had three big brothers: Vijay, Siddharth, and Arjun.
Like big brothers everywhere, they sometimes annoyed her – but Bina loves them anyway. So when the Hindu festival, Raksha Bandhan grows close, she decides to make her brothers some bracelets. They will be the perfect gift to celebrate the close relationship that ties them together as siblings. So Bina decides to buy beads to make the bracelets. Vijay loves blue but hates the color green. Siddharth loves green but can’t stand orange. And Arjun loves orange but is oh-so-tired of blue.
What I like about this book: This story integrates math by using colors and patterns. With only enough money to buy the beads her brothers love, Bina has to figure out how to make bracelets that are fun and include more than one color. Rajani also includes Back Matter (yay!) with information about the festival and a math exploration activity.
I caught up with Rajani a couple weeks ago and asked her One Question:
me: What made you so passionate about math - and so passionate about sharing
it with young people through your books?
Rajani: I love that math truly is everywhere, that we use it all the time to solve everything from simple, everyday problems to incredibly complex ones. There is a beauty to math that fills me with wonder. I love writing books that, I hope, inspire young people to think about math with a sense of discovery and fun.
Beyond the Books:
Make some patterns using two colors of beads or blocks – or even splats of paint. Like Bina, you might do alternating colors (green-blue-green-blue). What other kinds of repeating patterns can you make using only two colors? Here’s one to get you started: green-blue-blue-green-blue-blue…
Instead of colors, what other ways can you create patterns? Use different senses. Create some patterns you can see (shape? French fries vertical or horizontal?). Create patterns you can hear (drum beats? notes?). Create patterns of texture (sandpaper-smooth? different textures of cloth?)
Rajani is a member of #STEAMTeam2021. In addition to practicing medicine, she writes award-winning fiction and nonfiction books for children. Some of her titles this year include: Red, White, and Whole, Much Ado About Baseball, and Where Three Oceans Meet – plus more on the way! Find out more about her and her books at her website, www.rajanilarocca.com
We’ll be joining Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copy provided by the publisher.
I love Rajani's books! And this one looks like another winner.
ReplyDeleteI am in awe of anyone who makes math so much fun! :)
ReplyDeleteI have not been a huge fan of math most of my life- but this does sound like a fun book. I would love to go back and learn better math skills (mine seemed to fall apart when were learning long division). Thanks for sharing this book with us- I am going to tell my teacher friends about it. :)
ReplyDelete~Jess
This is such a fun book that I think kids will forget they are learning math while they focus on Bina's dilemma. Great activities, Sue.
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of making math fun! I could have used this book as a child as it wasn't my favorite subject. But it grew on me over the years. Thanks for sharing the gem. It's gorgeous.
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