SAM SORTS
Author: Marthe Jocelyn
Illustrator: Marthe Jocelyn
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Number of pages: 30
Publisher: Tundra Books First published in: 2017 Format: Picturebook Is the mathematical focus explicit in the story? Yes Is this story part of a mathematics story series? No Preview and/or purchase this book on the Amazon websites: UK, USA, AUS, IND, CAN Synopsis by the author/publisher
Sam's things are in a heap. Time to tidy up. He starts to organise his things, but quickly runs into trouble. He can make a pile of black and white things. But the penguin also belongs in the things with wings pile. He can make a pile of rocks. But the round rock also belongs in the round things pile. How will he ever sort his 100 things? Marthe Jocelyn takes a fun look at categories and counting in this very cleverly conceived story. Kids will delight in the cut-paper images of everything from a zipper pull to a robot, and Sam's surprising solution makes for a tidy end to this unique story. |
“Some things match because they have stripes. A few have dots or holes. Only one has checks. The snake is striped AND green ...”
Official review by MathsThroughStories.org:
Marthe Jocelyn’s ‘Sam Sorts’ (2017) has a simple storyline about a boy named Sam who wants to find a way to tidy up his room by sorting out his toys and personal belongings into groups. The story provides a meaningful context for young children to learn that there is more than one way of sorting objects into group and can help to foster children’s creative thinking by encouraging them to notice similar and different characteristics among all the objects. There is a page spread showing how a Venn diagram is used to classify the objects and this is perfect for introducing and explaining how the diagram is used. All in all, we recommend ‘Sam Sorts’ to either introduce or reinforce the concept of sorting and classification as well as a Venn diagram to children, aged 5+ years old. (Disclaimer: We received a complimentary inspection copy of this book from the publisher/author) It may be worth noting that the author has previously written another story that also focuses on sorting and classification, and it is called ‘Hannah’s Collection’ (2000).
Recommended age range:
5+ years old
Relevant mathematics topics:
Sorting & Classifying
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.
Marthe Jocelyn’s ‘Sam Sorts’ (2017) has a simple storyline about a boy named Sam who wants to find a way to tidy up his room by sorting out his toys and personal belongings into groups. The story provides a meaningful context for young children to learn that there is more than one way of sorting objects into group and can help to foster children’s creative thinking by encouraging them to notice similar and different characteristics among all the objects. There is a page spread showing how a Venn diagram is used to classify the objects and this is perfect for introducing and explaining how the diagram is used. All in all, we recommend ‘Sam Sorts’ to either introduce or reinforce the concept of sorting and classification as well as a Venn diagram to children, aged 5+ years old. (Disclaimer: We received a complimentary inspection copy of this book from the publisher/author) It may be worth noting that the author has previously written another story that also focuses on sorting and classification, and it is called ‘Hannah’s Collection’ (2000).
Recommended age range:
5+ years old
Relevant mathematics topics:
Sorting & Classifying
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.
