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EXPLORE OTHER 'ZERO' STORIES HERE

SUPER ZERO
​Author: Lori Haskins Houran
​Illustrator: Deborah Melmon

Picture
Number of pages: 27
Publisher: Kane Press (USA)
First published in: 2022
Format: Picturebook 

Is the mathematical focus explicit in the story? Yes
Is this story part of a mathematics story series? Yes (Mouse Math)

Preview and/or purchase this book on the Amazon websites: UK, USA, AUS, IND, CAN

Synopsis by the author/publisher
Albert has high hopes for the new squeakball season. He wants to score lots of goals! Then he gets his uniform number--a big, round zero. He runs and passes and makes lots of assists, but goals? Zero. His sister says zero is a secret super hero. Albert is sure it's cursed! Every Mouse Math title includes back matter activities that support and extend reading comprehension and math skills, plus free online activities.
“"You guys are thinking about this all wrong," Wanda said. "Zero is awesome. It's a secret superhero. I'll show you." [...] "Here's what one hundred looks like." Wanda painted 100. "Hey, it's got two zeros!" Leo said. ”
Official review by MathsThroughStories.org:
Lori Haskins Houran’s ‘Super Zero’ (2022), one of the latest titles in Kane Press’s Mouse Math series, is one of the very few mathematical stories in the market right now that explicitly focuses on the concept of zero for young readers. The story follows a young mouse named Albert who gets given a uniform number ‘0’ to wear for his squeakball matches. While Albert is very good at passing the ball to his teammates to score lots of goals, he himself has not scored any goal yet. Disappointed, he thinks the number ‘0’ is cursed. His sister, Wanda, shows him that the number ‘0’ when it is part of number teams (like 100, 1,000 or even 1,000,000) can help make these number teams stronger and bigger, so zero is really a secret superhero or Super Zero. Given how abstract the concept of zero is, it is not normally introduced to children until they are a bit older. However, this story does a fantastic job in introducing zero to very young children in a way that is meaningful and engaging to them. As an extra observation, the publisher/author also does well in including female characters as part of the squeakball team as well. Like the other titles in the series, this book also comes with follow-up activities that teachers and parents can do with their children once they have read the story, for example, children could be asked to think and write down numbers up to 100 that have zero in them, and for the children to try to order them from least to greatest. All in all, we highly recommend ‘Super Zero’ ​to introduce the concept of zero to children, aged 5+ years old.

Recommended age range: 
5+ years old

Relevant mathematics topics: 
Zero

​
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.

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ABOUT US

MathsThroughStories.org is a non-profit and research-based initiative, based at the University of Reading's Institute of Education (UK).

It sets out to help mathematics learners around the world develop their conceptual understanding in mathematics and to help them foster positive attitudes towards the subject through  the power of storytelling.

Contact Us

  • HOME
  • ABOUT US
    • RESEARCH TEAM
    • On-line Contributors
    • Research Dissemination
    • Research Impact
    • SHOUTOUTS
    • Teacher Training / CPD Services
    • MEDIA APPEARANCES
  • RESOURCES
    • RECOMMENDATIONS
    • BLOG
    • NEWSLETTER
    • BOOK REVIEWS >
      • BOOK REVIEWS
      • INSPECTION COPIES
    • LESSON IDEAS
    • VIDEOS
    • CREATE YOUR OWN MATHEMATICAL STORIES >
      • GUIDELINE FOR MATHEMATICAL STORY AUTHORS
      • INTERVIEWS WITH MATHEMATICAL STORY AUTHORS
    • 'HOW TO' BOOKS
    • RESEARCH ARTICLES
    • PRACTITIONER-ORIENTED ARTICLES
  • COMPETITIONS
    • 2022 YMSA WINNING, SHORTLISTED AND LONGLISTED ENTRIES
    • 2021 YMSA WINNING, SHORTLISTED AND LONGLISTED ENTRIES
    • 2020 YMSA WINNING, SHORTLISTED AND LONGLISTED ENTRIES
    • 2019 YMSA WINNING AND SHORTLISTED ENTRIES
  • NEWS
  • CONTACT US
    • GET INVOLVED