20 Fun Math Books with Stories for Kids

Mouse Count, by Ellen Stoll Wash, is written for preschoolers and includes papercut illustrations. This simple picture book is about a group of mice who outsmart a hungry snake.

How Do Dinosaurs Count to Ten? by award-winning duo Jane Yolen and Mark Teague features their classic dinosaurs. Preschoolers and kindergarteners will enjoy counting alongside the big dinosaurs as they stomp around.

Double the Ducks, written by Stuart J. Murphy and illustrated by Valeria Petrone, is a math start book for preschool and kindergarten. In this story, a boy is taking care of a few ducks when suddenly the number doubles.

Math Curse, by Jon Sciezka and Lane Smith, is a popular book for kids in preschool to second grade. The narrator is hit with the math curse, which turns everyday activities into math. Kids will enjoy how the math problems go from simple to silly, using addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Inch by Inch is by Leo Lionni and features his iconic papercut illustrations. Kids in preschool through second grade will enjoy the story of a little inchworm who loves to measure things. When he's asked to measure a song, he'll have to be clever.

One Grain of Rice, by Demi, is an Indian folktale. This retelling for preschool through third grade is about a girl who does a favor for the raja. In return, he grants her one favor and she asks for a grain of rice doubled every day for a month. Through the impressive math of doubling, she's able to feed her whole village.

What Time is It, Mr. Crocodile? is written by Judy Sierra and illustrated by Doug Cushman. This silly story introduces telling time to kids in preschool through third grade. Mr. Crocodile is trying to catch some little monkeys, but instead, they teach him about friendship.

Pitter Pattern, written and illustrated by Joyce Hesselberth, is all about patterns for preschoolers up to third grade. In it, a little girl goes through her week identifying patterns, which is a foundational math skill for kids.

Chicka Chicka 1 2 3 is part of an educational series by authors Bill Martin Jr. and Michael Sampson, illustrated by Lois Ehlert. In this picture book for preschool through second grade, kids can count numbers as each one climbs to the top of an apple tree.

The Doorbell Rang, by Pat Hutchins, is a classic for preschoolers up to third graders. In this cute story, Ma bakes a batch of cookies for her 2 kids to share, until the doorbell rings and friends come in. This is a clever and practical way to introduce division.

How Much is a Million?, written by David M. Schwarts and illustrated by Steven Kellogg, is a classic for kindergarten through second grade. In the story, a math magician explains large numbers in a way that's fun and approachable for kids.

Follow the Money! by Loren Leedy is a story about money and economics for kids in kindergarten through third grade. Go on an adventure with a shiny new quarter as it travels all around town getting spent, lost, washed, and more.

The Boy Who Loved Math is the biography of Paul Erdős, written by Deborah Heiligman and illustrated by LeUyen Pham. Erdős was a clever boy who could do impressive math from a young age and that led him on an adventure that will amaze kids in first and second grades.

Place Value is written by David A. Adler and illustrated by Edward Miller to introduce kids in kindergarten through third grade to place value. In this book, a family of monkeys are making banana bread and must follow the recipe closely to make sure it turns out right.

Tally O'Malley, written by Stuart J. Murphy with illustrations by Cynthia Jabar, uses a math concept for grades 1 to 3. Kids will love the story about a family going to the beach and using tally marks to count everything they see on the way.

A Place for Zero is written by Angeline Sparagna LoPresti and illustrated by Phyllis Hornung for grades 1 through 4. Readers follow Zero through the kingdom, where he discovers that although he doesn't do much for addition, he might have a unique place in multiplication.

Sir Cumference and the First Round Table is the first in a series by author Cindy Neuschwander and illustrator Wayne Geehan. For kids in grades 1 through 7, this narrative story introduces math concepts with a story about King Arthur. Sir Cumference, Lady Di of Ameter, and their son Radius will have to use math to help the kingdom.

The Grapes of Math, written by Greg Tang and illustrated by Harry Briggs, introduces a unique way of doing math for kids in grades 2 through 5. Each page includes an illustration and riddle to teach kids to count and add by grouping and looking for patterns.

Fractions in Disguise, written by Edward Einhorn and illustrated by David Clark, is one in a series of math adventure stories for grades 2 through 5. This fun and creative story follows George Cornelius Factor (a.k.a. GCF) as he reduces fractions, solves a mystery, and defeats the villains.

What's Your Angle, Pythagoras? is a story for kids in grades 3 through 5. Written by Julie Ellis and illustrated by Phyllis Hornung, it introduces the Pythagorean theorem with a fun story about a boy who travels around ancient Greece to learn about right angles.