Ten Magic Butterflies (McKellar Math)

Math is fun! Really, math IS actually fun, specially if you learn it from an early age. Books like this are the secret sauce to kickstart that sense of wonder and science and nature; and if you child manages to keep that healthy curiosity all the way up to the adult age, expect him to have a bright future (math is essential to land high-paying jobs in the tech industry, for example). This lovely book by Danica and Jennifer is meant to teach your small child all the different ways to sum two numbers and get 10 as a result. After this book, your kid will know that 10 is sum of 2 and 8, of 3 and 7, and many other ways (how many?). This seems like an easy task, right? For us adults it is indeed, and for your kid it will be too after this book. And if your child enjoys this book, there is lots more to explore after that. For example, tell your child there is a game based on this! It's called "Kakuro", and it plays just like the well-know Sudoku: you have to fill in numbers in a grid, but this time the number must sum to given value. If the value is "10" and there are two empty cells, then the answer will certainly be one of the combinations we have learned in the book, such as 3 and 7! (To find out which is right combination, you need to check the other clues, just like a crossword). You may also be surprised to discover there are mathematicians who dedicate their life to study the very same problem posed in the book, of describing a number as a sum of other numbers. They call it "the partition problem". We have seen that 10=7+3, but if we allow more than two numbers, how many combinations there are? We can write 10=3+3+6, or 10=1+5+4, or my favorite 10=4+3+2+1. There are 42 different combinations! And, as it turns out, to this day no one know a formula to discover the number of partitions of a number, without calculating first the partitions of all number that comes before it. We can find approximations though, one of them was found by the great genius from India, Srinivasa Ramanujan. Hollywood just made a movie about him, search for "The Man Who Knew Infinity". There is even a scene in movie with him explaining the partition numbers and calculating the approximation! There are so many stories that you can tell your kid after this. Another example: see how math in this book is made with poetry? It even has rhymes! Wouldn't it be fun if mathematicians used poetry and rhymes to express mathematics? Well, this used to be the way in the past! Certainly you must remember the quadratic equation (minus b, plus or minus the square root of delta, and so on). There is a formula for the cubic equation as well, and the person who created that formula, the italian mathematician Tartaglia, presented it to world in 1539 as a rhyming poem! Search in google for "Tartaglia's cubic poem", your kid will enjoy to know that! Math is incredibly fun, and this book might be the one to unlock the potential in your child. Danica's text is great and Jennifer's illustrations are amazing (I must say my favorite character is caterpillar engineer). Don't pass it up!

Cute and engaging book to intro math concepts. My almost 4 yo daughter started showing interest in addition, and she loves butterflies, so I purchased this book and it did not disappoint. The story is easy to follow and there are multiple math concepts - counting forward, counting backward, adding, subtracting - without the content feeling overwhelming. My 2 year old likes the pictures and the story, and I like that he’s getting exposure to counting and basic math without pushing anything on him. The focus is definitely more on math than a really creative, heartfelt story, but if your child is showing any interest in math, or likes flowers/butterflies/fairies, I would for sure recommend.

This is an excellent and fun way to teach reading and a very important basic math skill! I am a retired elementary teacher (taught first, second, and fifth grades). As a fifth grade math teacher, I realized one of the common inteferences with student math success was lack of the basic earlier grade level skills of number sense. One very important skill is being fluent in the umderstanding of combinations of ten. This book with it's beautiful illustrations and story line meets that need! Additionally loved the encouragement for parents to teach math as an integral part of their child's life ... so important. How to get the most out of "Ten Magic Butterflies" was a guidance that I feel sure parents (and teachers) will appreciate.

I learned about the release of this book upon planning to attend the LA Times book fest a few months ago. I knew right away it was going to be something special. I'm already a sucker for children's books, because story time with my daughter ranks right up there with my hometown NFL team winning the Super Bowl (Bucs). I want to give my daughter positive role models as early as possible. I thought I was going to have to wait a few more years to introduce her to Danica's books, but I couldn't be happier with this opportunity & purchase. My daughter just turned 5 & was already learning to count, but I know this book motivated & got her past that imaginary mental barrier, with it's adorable pictures, & of course unique "story-teaching." Even geared towards young kids, Danica is able to make math seem normal, & in this case "magical." My daughter was super excited to share the story with her friends at pre-school. I believe this book should be a staple for all parents, especially those interested in early learning & starting your kids off on a good journey with math. It also make a great gift!

I am an elementary teacher and I know the importance of making sure our children learn the basics of making a ten. It's the foundation for them as they move into higher level math. Finding creative and memorable ways to do this is the challenge. Danica McKellar hit the mark on her book, "Ten Magic Butterflies." This is the first book I bought from her and I was pleasantly surprised as I did grow up watching her as an actor. I didn't know that she had such a wealth of math knowledge or that she had a math degree. It's people like her that help to make our children better learners. I bought four books to share with my nieces and a friend's daughter. I knew they would love the book because of the color and beautiful pictures and images. I figured as they enjoy the art of illustration and story, they would also learn to count and make tens! Well done!

Really wanted this in my 3 year old’s library, but when I received it, I saw it was the hardcover version and I had wanted it as a board book.

Great for kids to see the magic in math!

I loved this book! I gave it to my 3 year old niece and she loved it also. Her big sister, who is 8 reads it with her and also enjoys it. The way it brings math principles into a good story line is quite unique, and as a strong STEM supporter and scientist myself, I can't say how great it was to find this author. I will also want to thank the other reviewers and Amazon recommendations, as I found this purely via searching Amazon - the process worked perfectly. The book is very well written and the illustrations are lovely and very fun - highly recommend!

Just as I expected...such a beautiful book with pretty colors and pictures. Perfect for my baby and quick delivery. Thank you Amazon.

Our toddler’s favourite book!

Beautiful story. Easy reading Great illustations Solid book. Easy to turn pages and no sharp corners

My kids love this book, it teaches early Maths as you read to your Children and it captures their attention.

We love all of the Danica McKellar books in our house. But this one is our absolute favourite. My daughter loves it so much, we read it every day. It has the sweetest colourful illustrations. I love the counting aspect in the book, it’s perfect for teaching all kinds of math, counting, adding and subtracting. It’s a great book to grow with your child. My toddler loves it now but I know it will be great for when she’s a bit older as well. The story is super catchy and my daughter loves the “bing bang boo” parts! Also has a wonderful message within about the grass not always being greener on the other side and loving who you are. Highly recommend!!