Neda Ghias Blog 3

1. The children's book, A Fair Bear Share, is written by Stuart J. Murphy. This picture book is about Mama Bear wanting to make her special Blue Ribbon Blueberry Pie, but it can only be done if her four cubs go and gather enough nuts, berries, and seeds. The four cubs go and then add up all they have collected by arranging it in groups of tens and ones. After, they realize they don’t have enough and it’s because one of the cubs spent the day skipping, running, and doing cartwheels instead of helping out. It is up to her to to go collect her share of ingredients so Mama Bear can make her special Blue Ribbon Blueberry Pie. 

2. The mathematical concept that was presented in the book was input/ output. This is because the amount of ingredients the cubs gather depends on the output, of Mama Bear producing the pie and how much she can produce. In other words the input  would be the ingredients that the cubs gathered and the output would be the amount of pie that can be produced by Mama Bear. If the bears don’t gather all the ingredients needed then they won’t be able to have the pie they wanted. This all depends on the one cub to do their share to have all that was needed. 

3. The book, A Fair Bear Share is an effective way to teach math because it’s an easier way to lay out the steps in a way that children can relate to at that age or are interested in. In this book specifically it raised the question of whether the cubs had enough ingredients for Mama Bear to make the pie. By regrouping their berries, nuts, and seeds by tens and ones helped show them that one of the cubs did not do their part. The use of pictures and easy language makes it easy for children to follow along but also learn a lesson at the end.