Hamster Champs (MathStart 3) - Hardcover

Murphy, Stuart J.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0060557729 ISBN 13: 9780060557720

Publisher: HarperCollins, 2005

Synopsis

“Kids, young and old, fall in love with math when they see how real-life and effortless it becomes thanks to these books.” —Kimberly D. Mueller, Ed.D., First Grade Teacher, Ashbrook School, Lumberton NJ

Hamster Champs is perfect for teaching angles to second, third, and fourth graders. With a few blocks, a board, and a protractor to measure the angles, the hamster champs have built a ramp that lets them fly high! But will this stunt be good enough to outwit Hector the cat?

Kids will love the story and the illustrations by Pedro Martin. Parents and educators will love how the story and pictures make understanding the math concepts a breeze—as well as the concrete examples of how math works. The book contains activities for adults to do with kids to extend math into their own lives. 

Math skills are life skills, and the MathStart series supports success!

• This award-winning series by Stuart J. Murphy teaches math through stories and visual models
• 63 books divided into three levels with 21 books in each
• Fun activities kids will love are included to help parents and teachers emphasize the lessons
• Engaging and relatable stories, with each story revolving around practical applications of the math concept presented
• Lively art from top-notch illustrators
• Charts and other visual representations help children understand how the math works and promote deeper comprehension

MathStart's unique combination of stories, illustrations, and visual models helps teachers and parents in the teaching of math and provides all children with the opportunity to succeed.

The math concepts taught in MathStart books conform to state and national standards. Level 1 is Pre-K–Kindergarten; Level 2 is Grades 1–3; Level 3 is Grades 2–4. The series follows math topics across grades so there is a foundational path to learning that runs through the levels.

Help kids with their math skills plus their reading skills with the engaging and fun MathStart series!

About this title

About the Authors

Stuart J. Murphy is a visual learning specialist. A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, he has a strong background in design and art direction. He also has extensive experience in the world of educational publishing. Drawing on all these talents, Stuart J. Murphy brings a unique perspective to the MathStart series. In MathStart books, pictures do more than tell stories; they teach math.

Stuart J. Murphy and his wife, Nancy, live in Boston.

Pedro Martin, a greeting-card artist for Hallmark, also illustrated Don't Know Much About® The Solar System and Don't Know Much About® The Presidents. He lives in Kansas City, Missouri.

From the Back Cover

We need the speed!

The hamster champs have a brand-new stunt, and this time there's a lot at stake. If the stunt works out perfectly, they won't get eaten by Hector the cat. But if things go wrong -- watch out!

Three daredevil hamsters, a few alphabet blocks, a board, and a protractor show how to measure angles -- and how to escape a hungry cat!

Reviews

Grade 1-3–The first book offers a lesson on angles. Three rodents that are racing-car enthusiasts create a series of ramps in an attempt to get the feisty house cat with attitude to stop bothering them. The colorful cartoon animals talk to each other with false bravado and snideness. (Back off, fur face! Wait till you see what we can do, fleabag!) Unfortunately, the lesson is poorly conceived–children might need more instruction in using a protractor (and might find it hard to believe that a racing car can zoom up a hill of pillows). Using brilliant colors, a variety of transportation modes, and plentiful lizards, Lizards demonstrates counting by 5s and 10s. Murphys rhyming text is short and simple and children can add up the reptiles on each spread. The final striking lizard show spread is jubilant, resembling fireworks on the page. While children may find Horse fairly predictable, its likely they will enjoy it. The watercolor cartoon horses and farm setting are appealing and light. The easy-to-read charts in the illustrations provide teaching tools for lessons on predictability as Hankie always does the same thing at the same time. Prior work with telling time is necessary for understanding the text. Beyond the math concept, this gentle story could offer reassurance to children.–Erlene Bishop Killeen, Fox Prairie Elementary School, Stoughton, WI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Gr. 2-4. This title in the long-running MathStart series couches a lesson about measuring angles in an entertaining story about three daredevil hamsters who outwit a skeptical cat. With their humans away, Pipsqueak, Chuckles, and Moe want out of their cage, but not if feline Hector is going to chase them. The cat agrees to back off--if the hamsters can come up with a stunt that pleases him. With a toy car, some blocks, and a protractor, the little champs set to work measuring an angle for a ramp, then revving up their car to fly. Alas, Hector is not impressed--until the hamsters gradually increase the angle to 180 degrees. The humorous cartoonlike characters are fun, and plenty of good-natured banter between the hamsters and the cat helps make the concept clear. Supporting material includes some adult-kid activity ideas and reference to three other children's books that make math fun. An entertaining supplement to math curricula. Shelle Rosenfeld
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 2005
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0060557729
• ISBN 13: 9780060557720
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Martin Pedro
• Number of pages: 40