Math Doesn't Suck: How to Survive Middle School Math Without Losing Your Mind or Breaking a Nail (McKellar Math) - Softcover

McKellar, Danica

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0452289491 ISBN 13: 9780452289499

Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group, 2008

Synopsis

From a well-known actress, math genius and popular contestant on "Dancing With The Stars"—a groundbreaking guide to mathematics for middle school girls, their parents, and educators

As the math education crisis in this country continues to make headlines, research continues to prove that it is in middle school when math scores begin to drop—especially for girls—in large part due to the relentless social conditioning that tells girls they “can’t do” math, and that math is “uncool.” Young girls today need strong female role models to embrace the idea that it’s okay to be smart—in fact, it’s sexy to be smart!

It’s Danica McKellar’s mission to be this role model, and demonstrate on a large scale that math doesn’t suck. In this fun and accessible guide, McKellar—dubbed a “math superstar” by The New York Times—gives girls and their parents the tools they need to master the math concepts that confuse middle-schoolers most, including fractions, percentages, pre-algebra, and more. The book features hip, real-world examples, step-by-step instruction, and engaging stories of Danica’s own childhood struggles in math (and stardom). In addition, borrowing from the style of today’s teen magazines, it even includes a Math Horoscope section, Math Personality Quizzes, and Real-Life Testimonials—ultimately revealing why math is easier and cooler than readers think.

About this title

About the Author

Danica McKellar is a New York Times bestselling author of groundbreaking math books, including Math Doesn't Suck: How to Survive Middle School Math, Girls Get Curves: Geometry Takes Shape, Kiss My Math: Showing Pre-Algebra Who's Boss, Hot X: Algebra Exposed!, and the Goodnight, Numbers series of children's books, and is a summa cum laude graduate of UCLA with a degree in mathematics. She is also well known for her acting roles on The Wonder Years, The West Wing, and multiple Hallmark Channel movies, and as a quarterfinalist on Dancing with the Stars. She lives with her family in Los Angeles.

Review

"McKellar... may well have done more to encourage girls to stick with math than any government task force... the wildly enthusiastic response [her books] have received speaks to the effect that can be achieved by reworking the contents of standard math and science problems and countering the perception that boys won't like girls who are smart."—Eileen Pollack, The New York Times

"Exhorts her female readers not to fall prey to others' low expectations, especially expectations that are based on deeply ingrained stereotypes stemming from one's appearance... McKellar genuinely wants to change the way girls view intelligence and, more importantly, themselves... McKellar hopes to revise the girly image of dim-bulbs with a new formulation: Smart is sexy. And that's an equation we all can understand."—Erica Stalnecker, National Review

Edition details

• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 0452289491
• ISBN 13: 9780452289499
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 336