How to Write a Children's Math Book

Math is boring to most children, so making it fun should be the objective.

Writing a children's math book is challenging. Math is a difficult subject to make interesting, and being able to hold a child's attention while finishing math exercises requires an ability to juggle many skills. Writing a math book for kids means wearing the hat of a writer, math teacher and illustrator. Many books of this sort are collaborations, and having a partner to work through the process with you is a good idea.

Instructions

1. Outline the math in the book. Decide on the level of math and the age level of the target reader. For very small children, counting and single digit addition is standard, whereas children of middle school age may need anything from mathematics to simple algebra or geometry.

2. Figure out how the book will get the math across to the reader. Some math books use stories with a puzzle involved, some use pictures and some merely have instructions with lists of math problems.

3. Decide on all of the math problems the book will cover, and organize them by chapter. Create an answer key. If the math is told in story form, write the stories at a level the reader will understand, and use ideas relevant to a child's environment.

4. Start compiling the book. Use a program like Microsoft Word to format the pages. Use standard-size paper, leaving enough space for children to write in the book.

5. Add illustrations. Children thrive on pictures, and the smaller the child the more important the pictures become. Adding an illustration to every pair of pages will make the book more interesting for the young reader.

6. Contact children's book publishers. Write a concise summary and choose the best chapter to send as a sample chapter if it is requested. Be persistent in the search for a publisher and expect a lot of rejection.

Tips & Warnings

• Develop characters for the book that can be used over, so that your math book can be the first in a series. Children love mascots. An ingenious mascot can make a good book great.

References

• Computation and Picture Books
• Math and Literature Idea Bank
• National Council of Teachers of Mathematics