The Horn Book Guide

SCIENCE

Packard, Edward

Big Numbers: And Pictures That Show Just How Big They Are!

32 pp. | Lerner/Millbrook | March, 2000 | Library ISBN 0-7613-1570-5 $$22.40

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Salvatore Murdocca. A pedagogically sound approach to introducing number sense, this engaging picture book's use of a single unit--peas--allows for consistent comparisons of numbers: a lone pea rests on a plate; a million peas cover a tabletop; a billion peas flood a house and pour into the yard. Silly asides ("Looks like it snowed peas"), large-number science facts, and Murdocca's comical illustrations add to the book's appeal.

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger