Pizza Pizzazz! (Hello Reader! Math, Level 3, Grades 1 & 2) by Carol A. Losi

Hello Reader! Math Level 3

by Carol A. Losi

Mario the Pizza Man uses outrageous toppings and his knowledge of fractions to make perfect pizzas that can be divided up. Includes related math activities.

Genres: Mathematics

Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Erin Fencil · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm mighty impressed by an educational math book that had my 4yo in stitches and introduced fractions! Tired of requests for boring cheese pizza, Mario the chef custom bakes pies with toppings and number of slices. Three firefighters get a pizza with hot dogs, hamburgers and marshmallows. "Then Mario lit the pizza on fire." Cue peals of laughter from my kiddo. The math lesson doubles as a guessing game because the toppings are listed before the customer's identity is revealed. (Get it? The firefighters like flame-cooked toppings.)

I'm not sure if one can spoil an early reader, but at the end Mario is visited by a huge crowd of eyestalked aliens and he decides he's had enough fractions for one day. The book concludes with some pizza-themed math activities for kids.

We could've used Mario in the 1980s, when according to legend Americans mistakenly thought A&W's 1/3 lb burger was smaller than McD's 1/4 pounder. :)

[Stephen Snyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very entertaining and very educational book. Children love the story and begin to learn about fractions. How can you possibly go wrong with this one?

Bravo Carol A. Losi!