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Math Picture Book of the Month

  • 1.  Math Picture Book of the Month

    Posted 13 days ago

    Hi All,

    Check out this Math Picture Book of the Month from Mary Ann Mahoney, Pre K Teacher and MLE Instructor from Rocky Mountain Prep Berkeley. 

    Toni

    Co-Lead Facilitator

    Early Math Interest Forum

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    The Mother Bruce books follow a grumpy bear named Bruce who accidentally becomes a mother to four geese. In Mother Bruce by Ryan T. Higgins (the first in the series), four geese eggs hatch and the geese imprint on Bruce as their mother. They follow him everywhere he goes. He tries many things to get rid of them, but nothing works. In the end, he embraces being "mother" to the geese. This is a really fun book to use to discuss fiction vs non-fiction.

    Math Concepts:

    1. Ordinal numbers

      1. Using ordinal numbers, describe the steps Bruce takes to get what he needs for his recipe: 1st he caught a salmon. 2nd he collected honey. 3rd he got eggs from a goose.

      2. List the mean things he says to try to get rid of them. 1st he said, "Go away." 2nd he said, "I am not your mother." 3rd he said, "I liked you better when you were eggs."

      3. List the ways he tries to get rid of them. 1st he explains migration. 2nd he tried to send them away with a slingshot. 3rd he put them in airplanes.

    2. Using a recipe

      1. Draw a sample recipe for what Bruce was making in the beginning. Ingredients: 1 salmon, 3 tablespoons of honey, 3 eggs. Directions. Boil the eggs. Cook the salmon in the oven. After the eggs and salmon are cooked, drizzle them with honey.

      2. Make a simple snack a bear might eat. Put 2 strawberries, 4 blueberries and 3 blackberries in a bowl. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of honey over the berries.

      3. Have students draw/write their own recipe for Bruce and his geese.

    3. Seasons

      1. Make a chart showing how geese move through the seasons. They hatch in the spring. They get bigger in the summer. They are grown in the fall and then migrate in the winter.

    4. Follow up with other books and math concepts.

      1. Hotel Bruce - Make a graph showing how many of each animal are in the hotel. Discuss more/less/equal as you compare sets of animals.

      2. Bruce's Big Move - Make a chart comparing how many geese, how many bears, how many mice and how many neighbors (not sure exactly what they are). In the end, count how many animals are at the party.

    Questions to ask:

    1. Could this book really happen or is it fiction? How do you know?

    2. Showing thumbs up/down: Do you like sunny days? Do you like rain? Do you like cute little animals?

    3. How did Bruce feel when he realized the mother goose was gone?

    4. What made the geese hard to take care of?

    5. How did Bruce try to get rid of the geese?

    6. Why didn't Bruce want to eat eggs anymore by the end of the story?

    7. How do you think Bruce feels about the geese by the end of the story?

    Suggested Activities:

    1. Make a class recipe book for Mother Bruce.

    2. Create a plan to help the geese go south for the winter.

    3. Act out the story as a class.

    4. Make a chart comparing migration and hibernation. Discuss what each one means and find animals that migrate and animals that hibernate



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    Toni Galassini
    Co-Lead Facilitator
    Early Math Interest Forum

    Professional Learning Specialist
    Chicago Public Schools Office of Early Childhood Education
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