PYTHAGORAS AND THE RATIOS
Author: Julie Ellis
Illustrator: Phyllis Hornung Peacock
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Number of pages: 31
Publisher: Charlesbridge Publishing (USA) First published in: 2010 Format: Picturebook Is the mathematical focus explicit in the story? Yes Is this story part of a mathematics story series? Yes (Charlesbridge's Math Adventure) Preview and/or purchase this book on the Amazon websites: UK, USA, AUS, CAN Synopsis by the author/publisher
Pythagoras and his cousins want to win a music contest, but first they must figure out how to play their instruments in tune, something that's never been done before. While trying to fix the problem, Pythagoras makes an important discovery - notes that sound pleasant together have a certain mathematical relationship. When Pythagoras applies this ratio to his cousins' pipes and lyres, the result is music to the ears. |
“"It may be that the relationship between each lyre string has to be the same as the relationship between the length of my pipes," Pythagoras said. "We just have to figure out what that relationship is."”
Official review by MathsThroughStories.org:
Julie Ellis’ ‘Pythagoras and the Ratios’ (2010) is inspired by the life of Pythagoras, and provides a perfect introduction to the concept of ratios, the Pythagorean ratios specifically. The story imagines how Pythagoras, as a young boy, might have discovered the connection between ratios and music tuning. This story is particularly useful in highlighting that mathematical stories are not only limited to simple counting stories. In fact, they can be a crucial mathematics learning tool for older children too. When compared to Julie’s other story, ‘What’s Your Angle, Pythagoras?’, the mathematical idea behind ‘Pythagoras and the Ratios’ can be slightly harder to grasp, particularly in relation to its second example (the lyre part). Additionally, certain terms could have been elaborated. For example, on page 5, Pythagoras said “We can simplify these numbers […] if we divide both the top and bottom numbers by the greatest common factor”. ‘Greatest common factor’ seems to abruptly appears here. For young readers who are not familiar with the term, they could find this part of the story difficult to follow. The illustrations by Phyllis Hornung Peacock are charming and mathematically accurate, though more connections to mathematical representation during the lyre part of the story would have been useful. All in all, ‘Pythagoras and the Ratios’ can be useful to extend high attaining children aged 9+ years old. (Disclaimer: We received a complimentary inspection copy of this book from the publisher)
Recommended age range:
9+ years old
Relevant mathematics topics:
Mathematicians; Ratio & Proportion
Possible teaching activities:
At MathsThroughStories.org, we believe that stories can be meaningfully incorporated in mathematics teaching in different ways. Thus, we are inviting you to share your experience of how you have used this story in your mathematics lesson with other members of the community. By sharing your experience with us, you will be added to our team of On-line Contributors here, where you can also find our submission guideline.
Julie Ellis’ ‘Pythagoras and the Ratios’ (2010) is inspired by the life of Pythagoras, and provides a perfect introduction to the concept of ratios, the Pythagorean ratios specifically. The story imagines how Pythagoras, as a young boy, might have discovered the connection between ratios and music tuning. This story is particularly useful in highlighting that mathematical stories are not only limited to simple counting stories. In fact, they can be a crucial mathematics learning tool for older children too. When compared to Julie’s other story, ‘What’s Your Angle, Pythagoras?’, the mathematical idea behind ‘Pythagoras and the Ratios’ can be slightly harder to grasp, particularly in relation to its second example (the lyre part). Additionally, certain terms could have been elaborated. For example, on page 5, Pythagoras said “We can simplify these numbers […] if we divide both the top and bottom numbers by the greatest common factor”. ‘Greatest common factor’ seems to abruptly appears here. For young readers who are not familiar with the term, they could find this part of the story difficult to follow. The illustrations by Phyllis Hornung Peacock are charming and mathematically accurate, though more connections to mathematical representation during the lyre part of the story would have been useful. All in all, ‘Pythagoras and the Ratios’ can be useful to extend high attaining children aged 9+ years old. (Disclaimer: We received a complimentary inspection copy of this book from the publisher)
Recommended age range:
9+ years old
Relevant mathematics topics:
Mathematicians; Ratio & Proportion
Possible teaching activities:
At MathsThroughStories.org, we believe that stories can be meaningfully incorporated in mathematics teaching in different ways. Thus, we are inviting you to share your experience of how you have used this story in your mathematics lesson with other members of the community. By sharing your experience with us, you will be added to our team of On-line Contributors here, where you can also find our submission guideline.
