Math Magic for Your Kids: Hundreds of Games and Exercises from the Human Calculator to Make Math Fun and Easy [Paperback]

Scott Flansburg (Author)

Book Description

In Math Magic, his New York Times bestseller, Scoff Flansburg demonstrated his universal ability to make math fun and easy for adults. Now in Math Magic for Your Kids, the Human Calculator does the same for elementary school children.

Measuring flour for a birthday cake, setting the dinner table, counting change -- learning these simple skills daunts millions of children. And helping them along can be frustrating for parents. In Math Magic for Your Kids, Scott Flansburg comes to the rescue. With entertaining games and tricks, this proven method helps kids develop a positive attitude about numbers, the necessary foundation on which they will build math skills for the rest of their education. Children will discover hours of independent amusement, while parents will find activities they can do with their children to supplement their schoolwork and to help them get better grades, including:

• Innovative counting exercises that teach addition and subtraction
• Writing activities that reinforce math concepts
• Shortcut methods that provide "magic tricks" for learning math skills
• Riddles and puzzles that activate logic and math basics
• Games and drills that introduce and perfect multiplication and division

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This book, whose author (Mathmagic: The Human Calculator, LJ 5/15/93) may be a familiar face from his TV infomercials, is supposed to be used by parents to help elementary school children master arithmetic with whole numbers from one to 12. Yet it is hard to imagine any parent actually making it to the end of this exercise, as it plods through the addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division of each individual number, one at a time, using extremely repetitious cartoon illustrations to take up space along the way. Flansburg's naive pedagogy doesn't seem more imaginative or encouraging than the type of exercises found in ordinary textbooks. The presentation is jumbled, and some of the instructions seem poorly thought out, as when he illustrates division with a picture of two shoes divided by two other shoes (it may make sense for addition, but how do you divide shoes into each other?) or suggests as an activity: "Take your children to the library and introduce them to the stories of Washington Irving" (what does that have to do with math?). Not recommended.
-?Amy Brunvand, Univ. of Utah Lib., Salt Lake City
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Back Cover

Math Magic for Your Kids provides a positive math experience. in fulfilling that purpose, the human calculator will:

-- Reinforce the basic operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division
-- Introduce strategies to make working with numbers easy
-- Lay a foundation for basic number sense
-- Reinforce other math concepts such as shapes and measuring
-- Relate math concepts to skills of language, logic, social studies, art, etc.
-- Demonstrate ways in which math is an integral part of everyday life
-- Show how much fun and how rewarding mastery of math concepts can be
-- Encourage independent thinking
-- Promote self-esteem
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks (January 20, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060977310
• ISBN-13: 978-0060977313
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #543,615 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinatingly different from traditional textbook math, July 18, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Math Magic for Your Kids: Hundreds of Games and Exercises... (Hardcover)

Though math was never a problem for me, I discovered that this book not only made math easier and faster, but it also caused the numbers to take on some practical meaning. I recommend the book for anyone who wants to understand the reason numbers work.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This Book's Great!, May 4, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Math Magic for Your Kids: Hundreds of Games and Exercises... (Hardcover)

This book has complex problems and exercises for Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication and Division. With the exercises and advice,this book teaches you the basics of doing Mental Calculation. Although Scott Flansburg only explains how to make the numbers 0 to 12 more sense to you, every child can enjoy math-because Scott, the Human Calculator, actually makes it fun!

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Confused on age level, July 26, 2001

By 

Barbwest (Walton, WV United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Math Magic for Your Kids: Hundreds of Games and Exercises from the Human Calculator to Make Math Fun and Easy (Paperback)

The book was ok however, I wanted a book for older students. This is recommended for 6 th 8 year olds. The book is in an easy to read format and has breaks to complete exercises to practice what you learned.