Slowpoke (Math Matters) - Softcover

Penner, Lucille Recht

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1575651084 ISBN 13: 9781575651088

Publisher: Astra Publishing House, 2001

Synopsis

Discover Math Matters! With over 15 million books sold worldwide, this award-winning series of easy-to-read books will help young readers ages 5–8 approach math with enthusiasm. Great for fans of MathStart or Step into Reading Math.

Teddy Kramer is always last! Even his friends called him SLOWPOKE. Tired of his nickname, Teddy decides to become the fastest kid in town. Does he succeed?

With engaging stories that connect math to kids’ everyday lives, each book in the Teachers’ Choice Award–winning Math Matters series focuses on a single concept and reinforces math vocabulary and skills. Bonus activities in the back of each book feature math and reading comprehension questions, and even more free activities online add to the fun! (Math topic: Elapsed time)

About this title

About the Author

Lucille Recht Penner was born in New York City and is an alumna of Barnard College. She has written 35 books for children on subjects ranging from dinosaurs to Native American food. Many of her books have been book club selections and two were Boston Globe Honor Books. Mrs. Penner lives in Tucson, Arizona and Portland, Oregon. Gioia Fiammenghi has illustrated numerous children’s books. Her work has been included on The New York Times’ list of 100 Outstanding Children’s Books’ Illustrators. Her awards include the AIGA and her work has been cited by the Child Study Association in their list of the Best Books of the Year. Gioia lives with her husband in Monte Carlo and has three grown children.

Reviews

Grades 1-3--Teddy is always last on line and the last in the water. When his class goes on a field trip to the zoo, he is the last to board the bus. His friend Robert suggests that he practice running every day without daydreaming so that he won't be such a slowpoke. The next day, Teddy runs from home to the bus stop, but on the way he waves to the tree doctor, picks up a quarter he finds, etc., and is again last on the bus. On Thursday, he leaves home so late that he doesn't have time to dawdle and he makes it to the bus in four minutes. From then on, he runs whenever he can. On Saturday he gets to the store in 12 minutes instead of the usual 20. He uses the spare minutes to read Runner magazine. In the end, he has earned the new nickname of "Slow down." Charts with a start and a finish time show the child's progress for each day. The plot has a nice flow to it, and the watercolor illustrations extend the story. However, the elapsed-time concept is difficult to follow and will need to be explained before children read the book. The related activities at the end are a little clearer. Also, it's unfortunate that the author seems to make the point that faster is better, without showing any balance between children being punctual and taking time to enjoy the little things in life around them.

Wendy S. Carroll, Montclair Cooperative School, NJ

Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Astra Publishing House
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1575651084
• ISBN 13: 9781575651088
• Binding: Paperback
• Illustrator: Fiammenghi Gioia
• Number of pages: 32