World Book Day: 5 Books that will spark your child's mathematical imaginations

What do The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, The Foundation series by Isaac Asimov, and A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking have in common? Maths is the central theme in all these books. However, books that have a mathematical theme are not just for adults. There are plenty of books that your child can read to discover how fascinating the subject is. Moreover, they make your child imagine, and that is something that is always a welcome bonus!

On the occasion of World Book Day, we have curated a list of books that you should introduce to your children. These books have the elements of curiosity and fantasy – something that all children's books should have. But they also have an element of maths, which will enable your child to think of a number-filled world beyond the four walls of a classroom.

1. Baby Goes to Market by Atinuke, illustrated by Angela Brooksbank: In this book, Nigerian-born author Atinuke presents a heart-filled story about a baby and his mother in a bustling Nigerian marketplace. The picture book (with illustrations by Angela Brooksbank) is a great introduction to numbers for younger learners. The maths in this book can be recognised by kids without prompting due to its engaging and relatable content.

2. Have You Seen my Dragon? by Steve Light: This counting book for kids follows a child narrator who searches for his pet dragon in a colourful and detailed cityscape. The protagonist counts objects from hot dogs to traffic lights in the bustling city among all sorts of city dwellers to look for his dragon. The pen and ink illustrations will catch your child's attention and elevate this counting book to new levels.

3. Absolutely One Thing by Lauren Child: The 2017 Mathical Prize winner tells the story of Charlie who guides his little sister Lola through the rules of numbers as they go to the toy store. This charming picture book is perfect for kids to give them a humorous outlook on the subject. The visually-appealing story presents simple maths as encountered by two children, making it very relatable for young kids learning maths.

4. A Hundred Billion Trillion Stars by Seth Fishman, illustrated by Isabel Greenberg: This out-of-the-box book uses compelling facts from the universe and our planet to explore various concepts of maths from measurement to estimation. The insightful plot will help spark your child's interest in maths and get them excited to know about numbers. It is the perfect window into the vast universe of mathematics for your kids.

5. Really Big Numbers by Richard Evan Schwartz: In this book mathematician and author Richard Evan Schwartz takes his readers on an illustrated and numerical journey where they go from zero to infinity. The book's funny narration and striking visuals encourage the readers to contemplate the subject even after they finish reading the book. Start your kids off with this maths book to make their imaginations run wild!

These books can not only give students a glimpse into mathematical concepts but also inspire them and set their foundation right for future success. They will help students in relating the subject to things around them and give helpful tips on how they can approach the subject and eventually excel in maths!

Manan Khurma, Founder & Chairman at Cuemath

Manan Khurma has been a Mathematics educator since his college days. He founded Locus Education upon graduating from IIT Delhi in 2007 and trained over ten thousand students for IIT-JEE within the first few years of his career as an educator. This experience of teaching JEE aspirants helped him gain insight into how the youth of the country perceives and studies Math.

He quickly realized that the combination of learning math through rote culture and the lack of a strong foundation from a young age led most students to fear math. Driven by his passion for the subject, he wanted to find a way to help children overcome this fear and understand how Math is present in every aspect of life. He believes that mathematics must be taught and learnt as a life skill and not just another academic subject.

Inspired by his understanding of the challenges faced by young students, Manan formulated a new way of teaching the subject – a math program called 'Math by Reasoning'. This was also the genesis of Cuemath – an engaging platform that not only helps children master the subject, but also fall in love with it. Founded in 2013, Cuemath is steadily challenging the conventional way students have been taught math and is also inculcating a strong base of foundational skills in children that matter immensely in all areas from Advanced Math and Coding to Data and AI; hence empowering the next generation of problem solvers and decision makers in the world.

Manan believes that changing the world needs more than just altruism. It requires inventive geniuses who will someday find solutions to the major problems faced by the modern world. This is why it is important to build a strong math foundation in our children and help them visualize math. This passion for mathematics reflects in his everyday life, where he chooses to spend time on building math content and programs apart from regular training. Manan holds a bachelor's degree in B.Tech, Electronics and Communications Engineering from IIT, Delhi.