Reading offers so many benefits for children. Reading exposes kids to new words, builds key language skills, learn new information about the world, and so much more. Simply put, reading—lots of reading—is essential for kids. But it takes awesome books to get kids reading. That’s why Spark Math by Spark Education has put together a Math Summer Reading List for kids in Pre-K to 6th grade to help them continue learning and fight the summer slide.
We encourage you to explore books in grade levels below and above. They are handpicked books and that will get kids hooked on reading every day. Let’s get started!
Pre-K to 3rd Grade Reading List (ages 4-9)
1. Round Is a Tortilla: A Book of Shapes
- Written by Roseanne Thong & Illustrated by John Parra
- Grades Pre-K-1
Math Concepts
- Shapes
A little girl discovers that shapes are all around her. She finds shapes in the food she eats, games she plays, objects in here room, and places around her town. This lively picture book helps reinforce the concept of shapes found in daily life.
Spark Math Verdict
The lively picture book teaches more than just common shapes. Weaving seamlessly together many references to Latino culture and a foreign language, such as “Round are tortillas and tacos” and “a bowl of abuela’s stew,” the book is a delightful read-aloud that also shares fun parts of other cultures.
2. Rooster’s Off to See the World
- By Eric Carle
- Grades Pre-K-1
Math Concepts
- Counting 1 to 5
One fine morning, a rooster sets off to see the world. Soon he’s joined by 2 cats, then 3 frogs, then 4 turtles, then 5 fish. Later, his new friends head home one group after another, first 5 fish, then 4 turtles, then 3 frogs, then 2 cats. The rooster is alone again and returns to his own home as well.
Spark Math Verdict
The story helps children count from one to five and then back down from five to one. The beautiful, colorful collage illustrations make it a delightful read. A fun book activity idea is to ask kids to draw their own illustrations—1 rooster, 2 cats, 3 frogs, 4 turtles, and 5 fish—and act out the story.
3. 365 Penguins
- Written by Jean-Luc Fromental & Illustrated by Joëlle Jolivet
- Grades K-3
Math Concepts
- Counting
- Addition
- Multiplication
It’s good to get presents, right? Well, that depends on if one likes penguins, lots and lots of penguins.
Starting at 9 AM on New Year’s day with a knock on the door, the family gets a penguin as a present. The family is bemused and finds the penguin very cute. But each day thereafter, a new penguin arrives. The family soon starts having all sorts of problems. For one, how does one care for so many penguins? How does one feed, clean, and house so many penguins? Learn about penguins, conservation, and elements of maths.
Spark Math Verdict
The title is not an exaggeration! There really are 365 illustrated penguins (go ahead and count them)! The book, illustrated in predominantly orange, black, and white, educates kids about numbers in a fun, humorous way. Kids can practice adding large numbers and even multiplication.
4. One Is a Snail, Ten Is a Crab: A Counting by Feet Book
- Written by April Pulley Sayre and Jeff Sayre & Illustrated by Randy Cecil
- Grades K-3
Math Concepts
- Addition
- Subtraction
- Counting
1 is a snail.
2 is a person.
3 is a person and a snail.
4 is a dog.
5 is a dog and a snail.
This playful book uses feet and footprints as a a counting tool. The book counts all the way up to 100—100 is ten crabs!
Spark Math Verdict
Who doesn’t like counting… with feet! The book is a fun way to introduce numeracy and talk about math to kids. Challenge kids by asking them to try multiplication instead of counting and exploring other ways to make 100 feet. For example, instead of 10 crabs, how about 8 crabs (80 legs) and 5 dogs (20 legs)?
5. Two of Everything: A Chinese Folktale
- By Lily Toy Hong
- Grades 1-3
Math Concepts
- Addition
- Counting
- Patterns
Meet Mr. Haktak and Mrs. Haktak. They are very old and very poor. They live in a small hut and have a tiny garden where they grow their food. One day, Mr. Haktak digs up an ancient brass pot in his garden. He puts his coin purse (with his last five gold coins) in the pot and carries the pot home. When Mrs. Haktak’s hairpin falls into the pot, she reaches in and not only are there two identical hairpins, there are two identical coin purses–that is two purses, each with five gold coins, making 10 gold coins total! This is a magic pot!
Life is good for the Haktaks until one day, when someone falls into the pot… Let’s just say more isn’t always better.
Spark Math Verdict
The fun folktale is an excellent math resource for practicing addition and introducing doubling numbers and things. Help kids practice counting, or better still, skip counting with the different groups of numbers.
6. Even Steven and Odd Todd
- Written by Kathryn Cristaldi & Illustrated by Hank Morehouse
- Grades K-2
Math Concepts
- Even Number
- Odd Number
This is a book about two cousins Steven and Todd, who are very different. Steven lives an even life and likes even numbers. He lives in a 2 story house with 4 bikes, 6 cats, 8 gerbils, 10 goldfish, and a flower garden with 12 sprinklers. Todd, on the other hand, has his odd ways and likes odd numbers. When Todd enters into Steven’s even life, things quickly get problematic.
Spark Math Verdict
This is a funny, interesting book for children to learn about odd and even numbers. Use the book to help teach skip counting to children from a young age. The math concept will be helpful for kids when they get into multiplication.
4th to 6th Grade Reading List (ages 9-12)
1. This Book Thinks You’re a Math Genius
- Written by Mike Goldsmith & Illustrated by Harriet Russell
- Grades 3-4
Math Concepts
- Geometry
- Space and volume
- Statistics
- Numbers and number patterns
- Codes and ciphers
- Concept of infinity
Looking to bring math concepts to life in creative ways? The book centers around 7 key mathematical concepts. Each mathematical concept includes activities, such as reading minds with math and paper-based crafts, that engage kids in a fun way.
Spark Math Verdict
The book balances being fun and educational, and helps introduce key mathematical concepts in a highly visual way. The book, which has many fill-in and DIY pages, encourages young learners to experiment and investigate math concepts for themselves.
2. The Secret Little Leaguer
- By Don Creighton
- Grades 4-6
Math Concepts
- Average
- Percentage
Charley Baker is eleven years old and is an oddball in his family. His parents are both professionals and his siblings are extremely scholarly and intellectual. Charley, on the other hand, struggles in school. He is only good at 3 things: he loves to run, throw things, and climb trees.
One day, Charley’s friend Butch tries to get him to try out for the little league team. Charley, who has never even put on a glove or held a bat, discovers his love for running and throwing things actually make him quite a good baseball player. Charley makes the team. However, because Charley believes his family thinks sports are not for people like them, he must hide his secret little leaguer identity.
Spark Math Verdict
One doesn’t have to be into baseball to enjoy the story. Join Charley and become a secret little leaguer. See how he works hard to balance school and baseball practice. The book is also filled with fun baseball math, like batting average, on-base percentage, and all that good stuff. Continue reading our Math in Sports: Baseball and Mathematics to learn more.
3. Humble Pi: A Comedy of Math Errors
- By Matt Parker
- Grades 6+
Math Concepts
- Applied mathematics (or really, how our world is built on math)
Turns out the number π (Pi), a mathematical constant that is the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter, which is approximately equal to 3.14159, is not so humble after all. Because in the real world, a misplaced decimal can lead to results that range from funny to disastrous. From big data to elections to space exploration failures and more, the book explores mathematical mishaps in the world.
Spark Math Verdict
This book is the answer to any kid who asks, “When am I ever going to use this in the real world?” Here it is, some of humanity’s all-time greatest miscalculations. Math, or getting math wrong, has never been so interesting.
Looking for more fun ways to make math part of your kid’s summer? Spark Math is an education program perfect for helping kids use the skill they learned all year in fun and engaging ways. Available for students from Pre-k to 6th grade, Spark Math’s online program features online classes, gamified lessons, and a real experienced teacher. Try it for yourself by signing up to try a free demo class today!
Want to find out what your student should know before enter the new school year? Check out our Spark Math blog for great news and activities the whole family can enjoy. Check out our Pinterest Page for more fun activities!
