Knowledge and learning resources are a click away. This is all thanks to the progress in technology, anchoring the way classrooms are taught in the 21st century. Imagine learning math without the concepts educators know today.
Before visionaries found a way to efficiently teach math and many other subjects, pioneers of the field had to explore the unknown and make discoveries that changed the field and how it’s taught forever.
Many believe that the story of math, its origin, its contribution to society, and how it’s taught to future generations started in an ancient city called Mesopotamia. It was in this city that helped build the foundation of science, technology, higher thinking, and the future.
Inspire your kids to learn math, develop a passion for numbers, and learn from the lives of the greatest minds of history – the finest mathematicians to ever walk the Earth. In this article are books you can use to encourage your kids to pursue their passion in mathematics. Learn from the greatest mathematicians’ most grand discoveries and spark your kids’ love for numbers
The book brings readers back to the great city of Alexandria, deep into the grind of 4th Century AD. Hypatia, the daughter of the mathematician Theon, grew up to be an intelligent young lady at the northern tip of Egypt.
However, times were very different in Hypatia’s time, as most of the girls of her era did not know how to read or write. The young protagonist, on the other hand, was highly literate and educated, growing up tutored in mathematics, astronomy, and philosophy.
As she grew smarter and her fame wider, her brilliance became popular all over the world. Other thinkers, academics, and scholars traveled miles to seek her advice and opinions in the arts and sciences. Her greatness, known far and wide, had even reached the writing of the great Socrates.
Through the remarkable collaboration and D. Anne Love and the vivid illustrations of Pam Paparone, Hypatia has seeming come back to life, inspiring young minds and encouraging readers to pursue greatness and love for mathematics.
Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13 – Rated 4.9 Stars
When people talk about the Apollo 13 moon mission, they don’t often think about one of the biggest heroes of the monumental event. Like the film Hidden Figures, this book follows Katherine Johnson, an amazing African-American legend who worked with NASA to keep the astronauts of Apollo 13 safe.
Katherine Johnson is an African-American woman who ingeniously calculated and crunched the numbers that charted Apollo 13’s way home. The story introduces Katherine Johnson, the American hero, and how she became the mathematical genius that helped advance science and engineering through numbers.
The book starts with Katherine Johnson’s childhood and how she loved math. She often counted steps on the road and the number of dishes and spoons she needed to wash in the kitchen. Her limitless curiosity and sharp analysis allowed her to explore mathematical concepts. Help your kids learn from the finest minds in history and get them excited about the ability of math to help lives and change the world forever.
Ada Byron Lovelace & the Thinking Machine – Rated 4.7 Stars
In the modern age, computers are necessities on a day-to-day basis. This story dates back to the first computer, following the story of Ada Lovelace – the genius who wrote the world’s first computer program.
Ada Lovelace is the daughter of the great Lord Byron, the famous romantic poet and a genius in his own right. Ada Lovelace improved and developed her creativity by exploring science and math concepts. The story features Ada Lovelace’s meeting with Charles Babbage, the mind behind the first mechanical computer.
Upon learning more and more about the first mechanical computer, she starts to realize that she understands the machine better than anyone has ever before. With her fascination and ingenious mind, she developed the world’s first-ever computer program and demonstrated its capabilities, changing technology forever.
This book is an inspiring story for children, able to encourage young minds and little girls to pursue a career and life in science. This makes the book an excellent addition to school nooks and home libraries for your kids.
Newton’s Rainbow: The Revolutionary Discoveries of a Young Scientist – Rated 4.9 Stars
Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be a genius growing up? From his childhood to his famous encounter with the falling apple, this book tells the tale of Isaac Newton, the great scientist who changed the way humanity views the universe forever.
The story of the falling apple and many of his experiences are what made him the legend he became. In this book, Newton’s Rainbow, readers go through the tale of his life and his most inspiring experiences. From the young Isaac, who always read, who was curious, and was constantly observing, to becoming one of the greatest minds of all time, the book walks its readers through the scientist’s finest accomplishments.
The book features excellent art and illustrations to fully and precisely share Isaac Newton’s life. This biography teaches children about Isaac Newton’s best contributions to science and physics, sharing his discoveries in gravity, motions, and even rainbows.
Sir Isaac Newton gifted mankind with a brand new understanding of the world and how it works, changing science forever.
The Librarian Who Measured the Earth – Rated 4.8 Stars
This story tells the tale of one of the greatest thinkers to ever live. The award-winning biography that won the Newberry honor teaches children about introductory mathematical concepts through the life of a great Grecian philosopher. Eratosthenes is a Greek scientist and philosopher. His great mind is often credited as being the one to compile the first-ever geography book. Eratosthenes is the first-ever philosopher and scientist to calculate the globe’s circumference.
The book is an amazing way to encourage children to strive for things that they have never done before. This biography is an excellent educational resource to encourage kids to pursue math, science, and history.
The Librarian Who Measured the Earth shares interesting facts about the world Eratosthenes lived in. These details and facts, with the interesting biography, make this book a fantastic resource for children who are interested in the world.
Lines, Bars and Circles: How William Playfair Invented Graphs – Rated 4.9 Stars
William Playfair saw the world differently. Through these visions, this genius from Scotland developed and introduced the concepts of graphs to the rest of the world. Born 250 years ago in Scotland, William Playfair had a unique perspective on the world. This unique perspective, unfortunately, caused him to struggle sometimes.
The Scottish genius lived a life of ups and downs as he attempted to share his vision with people around him. William Playfair faced failure after failure, and his story is an inspiration for perseverance and determination.
Lines, Bars and Circles: How William Playfair Invented Graphs follows the genius’ journey as he pursued innovation. He created the first modern line graph as he wrote a book about economics. Next, he also created the bar graph and the pie chart much later.
These inventions changed the way people presented and analyzed data, opening the doors to a new era in mathematics and science. William Playfair’s innovation made data easier to understand, changing how the world and people interact with data forever.
Nothing Stopped Sophie: The Story of Unshakable Mathematician Sophie Germain – Rated 4.8 Stars
Imagine living in a time when parents refused to allow children to study math. Sophie Germain, the great eighteenth-century mathematician, lived through an era when her parents actively took away her candles to stop her from studying. But as the title of the book suggests, nothing stops Sophie. She fought for her right to study and even sent her homework to professors under a make pen name. Her mind was so great that she solved a math problem make scholars at the time claimed to be impossible to solve.
Sophie Germain used her passion for math and sheer determination to keep pushing her boundaries and revisiting unsolvable equations. Soon, she had tested equations that would allow people to predict patterns of vibrations. As an inspiration to womanhood and people with the drive for greatness despite obstacles, she won a prestigious award. Sophie Germain won the grand prize from France’s prestigious Academy of Sciences. The award-winning formula laid the foundations for modern architecture.
The Boy Who Loved Math: The Improbable Life of Paul Erdos – Rated 4.8 Stars
When people think about mathematicians, they often imagine people working alone in a room with endless boards filled with equations. To some extent, this stereotype holds some truth – as many do. However, Paul Erdos took the path less traveled.
Even since childhood, Paul Erdos had shown an incredible affinity for numbers and mathematics. At the tender age of four years old, you could tell him the date of your birthday; he could calculate how old you are in seconds. Paul Erdos traveled the world, collaborating with one mathematician to the next and publishing and creating an amazing number of publications.
The book beautifully illustrates his ventures through lyrical text and charming drawings. It’s an incredible educational resource that helps introduce children to fundamental math concepts. The story is a fascinating and inspiring way to encourage children to pursue a life of collaboration and discovery.
The book Margaret and the Moon is a story following one of the finest minds to ever grace NASA, Margaret Hamilton. As a woman, Margaret Hamilton is an inspiration to young ladies all over the world. The story tells the tale of the rise of Margaret Hamilton, who loved numbers as a young girl.
Even at a young age, Margaret Hamilton had a fascination for the moon, as she memorized how many miles there were between Earth and the moon. She had a great passion for algebra, geometry, and calculus and how they could solve problems outside the planet. Her love for mathematics led her to a career in science, studying at the Massachusetts Institutes and Technology and ultimately working at NASA.
In the book, she will be introduced to the readers as the great mind who handwrote code that would push technology forward, solving problems for modern spacecrafts. Her genius helped Apollo 8, Apollo 9, Apollo 10, and Apollo 11, basically making the missions possible in the first place.
Help your children learn from the first woman professional scientist. Set in an era that was much less hospitable to women, Caroline Herschel defied odds to become the legend that she is today. This icon for women relied on courage and confidence. This combination propelled her to become the first woman ever to become a professional scientist and the of the greatest astronomers in history.
Youngest of a poor family in Hanover, Germany, Caroline was born susceptible to illnesses. She struggled through bouts of smallpox and typhus. Her own parents abused Caroline, treating her as a scullery maid, so when her closet and most favorite brother, William, left for England, he took her with him.
The duo loved the stars. Together, the siblings built a telescope that would come down as the greatest of their age. Through this telescope, Caroline Herschel was able to discover fourteen different nebulae, and a pair of galaxies. Professionals and experts in the industry still use Caroline Herschel’s catalogs to this very day.
To anyone who might have encountered basic geometry, they might recognize the name Pythagoras from somewhere. This is because this name is behind the revolutionary Pythagorean Theorem. Despite being quite the interesting challenge it is in mathematics, there’s more to the name than being an equation or formula. Pythagoras lived a colorful and curious life – one that children can learn from and view as inspiration.
Pythagoras’ life is all about following his curiosity. His curiosity has led him to travel from Samos to Alexandria. From the people he meets, he is taught about the right angle, a concept he’ll use as he builds. Pythagoras utilized his knowledge in geometry to develop a way to learn all that he needed about right triangles. The book ‘What’s Your Angle, Pythagoras?’ shares the visionaries’ story of resilience, resourcefulness, and ingenuity.
Blockhead: The Life of Fibonacci – Rated 4.7 Stars
This book is about Leonardo Fibonacci, a young boy in medieval Italy who was in love with numbers and wanted to explore mathematics day and night. His love for numbers made him unpopular with his peers, as people called him a blockhead.
As he got older, explored, and traveled the world, Leonardo Fibonacci grew even more passionate about math. He learned more about numbers from different lands and countries, allowing him to broaden his knowledge. This story portrays the story of how a boy who was called blockhead became one of the greatest minds in history.
He conceptualized a mathematical concept that drew heavy inspiration from the number of petals on flowers and the spiral of a nautilus shell that seemed to follow a specific pattern. This Leonardo Fibonacci is none other than the genius behind the Fibonacci Sequence.
Grace Hopper: Queen of Computer Code – Rated 4.9 Stars
Grace Hopper: Queen of Computer Code is all about girl power. Grace Hopper was the brave woman who defied stereotypes and revolutionized computer science. This book tells her story through images and illustrations that tell a story. This picture book is a biography and tribute to one of the greatest minds who shaped the modern world.
Grace Hopper is more than just a name in history books. She was a software tester, a ray of sunshine, a beloved mentor, a great innovator, a naval leader, and, above all, a risk-taker. Through award-winning author Laurie Wallmark’s masterwork, the book breathes new life into the trailblazing phenom who made history by doing something no one else had ever done. She had an insatiable curiosity that led to innovation and solutions, serving as an inspiration to both men and women.
Combining a compelling narrative and amazing illustration, Grace Hopper’s story is given a vivid new life through this book.
On a Beam of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein – Rated 4.8 Stars
There are few names more recognizable than Albert Einstein’s. From his signature hair to his signature mustache, Albert Einstein is undoubtedly among the most famous names in scientific history. His work changed the way humanity views the universe and left a lasting mark on scientific society.
On a Beam of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein follows the tale of a young boy riding his bicycle down a dusty road. In his mind, he sees his bicycle traveling at the speed of light, speeds beyond the realm of imagination. This imaginative mind would one day gift the world with his genius, changing the field of physics and the understanding of the universe forever.
Written by Jennifer Berne and featuring the illustrations of Vladimir Radunsky, the book introduces Einstein, the dreamer, and the genius, taking readers through an adventure of curiosity and laughter, exploring science through the lens of the world’s greatest geniuses.
These are some of the finest educational sources in the market that can inspire and encourage children through stories and a love for mathematics. Each book with be a fantastic addition to your children’s library cards or book list with their electrifying stories and aesthetically-stimulating artwork. Help the learn and love numbers through words and pictures at a young age because, after all, learning never starts too early.
Hi, my name is Elena Jones, and my full-time job is a teacher. Through teaching, I have discovered that children learn in many different ways, and have seen the positive impact both STEM and Montessori toys have on children.
Through this site I hope to educate parents and adults about these toys, providing them with useful information on how they can be used, and provide some in depth reviews of different toys to consider too.
