1+1=5 And Other Unlikely Additions (2010) - Plot & Excerpts
This book frustrated me. While the idea was cute, it is not something I would want young students to read in the classroom. It seems to present the idea that anything can be added, regardless of what the things are. This is not true. Addition requires like terms, and when you add, the sum will be a number of the same things you added. When you add 3 apples and 5 oranges, you don't get 8 apple-oranges. Some would argue that you could change the unit to fruit, since apples and oranges are both fruit, but that requires an exchange. This book does not clearly define or show how exchanges are made, and I think it makes it confusing to kids what can and can't be added as well as what units you end up with when you add. Perhaps it would be a fun thinking activity for older students who already understand correct principles of addition, but I would still be skeptical. I like the divergent thinking here - 1 + 1 = 5 when 1 set of twins + 1 set of triplets = 5 babies. With each page turn, kids have to think about what 2 groups of some things could add up to a certain number. Most are pretty tough to guess: 1 duet + 1 quartet = 6 musicians. But it's a fun challenge for kids to then think of their own 1 + 1 groups. This could be fun to read with "One is a Snail, Ten is a Crab: a counting by Feet book" by April Pulley Sayre, Jeff Sayre, and Randy Cecil, or "This Plus That" by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Jen Corace.
What do You think about 1+1=5 And Other Unlikely Additions (2010)?
I thought this was very entertaining and I will definitely use this in my classroom.
—zoia
This clever counting book is a must-have for primary teachers.
—Shannonx
Love it! A great book to get kids thinking outside the box.
—Kelsea
Very creative!I think I could even learn to love math;-)
—Joamurt
