Review by Booklist Review
Gr. 1-3. Nineteen kinds of birds are featured in this collection of beginning word problems in verse. Adler's 20 number riddles challenge readers to decide whether to use addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division to find the answer. Luckily for younger kids, many of the answers can be determined by simply counting the birds in the colorful pictures. A typical riddle goes: Scissor-tailed flycatchers / sitting in trees. / Scissor-tailed flycatchers / sitting in threes. / Three to a tree. / Five trees in all. / How many scissor-tailed flycatchers / sitting in trees? In small type and upside-down, a sentence below the text on each page tells the process for finding the answer and gives the answer itself. With serviceable verse and attractive computer-assisted illustrations, this will be useful for parents and teachers who want to introduce techniques for solving word problems. --Carolyn Phelan Copyright 2006 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 2-4-From "Crows in Rows" to "Obese Geese," this title presents a flock of bird-themed rhyming word problems. Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division tables conveniently cover the endpapers, and a brief introduction to each mathematical function is provided on the first spread. Miller's festive, computer-generated illustrations give the book a retro look and jazz up the sometimes-forced, occasionally bland rhymes. The word problems are also somewhat repetitive. While this book is undoubtedly more enticing than worksheets, other titles do more to inspire and teach children. Jon Scieszka's Math Curse (Viking, 1995), for example, is a much better choice for making math fun and stretching kids' critical-thinking skills, while Greg Tang's The Grapes of Math (Scholastic, 2001) seamlessly embeds problem-solving strategies right into the (much more fluid and funny) rhymes. Still, Adler's offering is a suitable addition to collections in need of another math picture book.-Jill Heritage Maza, Greenwich High School, CT (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Twenty-one rhyming bird-centric word problems challenge children to add, subtract, multiply and divide: "Twenty blue jays / by the bay. / Twelve fly off. / How many stay?" A simple opening page gives youngsters clues as to when to use each operation, but lacks the explicit vocabulary hints that math teachers would give. The chosen operation, equation (equations in the case of multiplication) and answer can be found upside down or sideways on the same page as the problem, making it easy to check work, or peek, for that matter. The endpapers are resources, featuring addition, subtraction, multiplication and division tables up through ten. Miller's illustrations keep the details simple so that children can use the pictures to help them solve the problems. Great practice for those who need it, especially with some teacher or parent guidance. (Picture book/nonfiction. 5-10) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
