Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion New Math Book for Gifted Students

I've seen many posts from people here looking for similar resources, so I thought I'd announce that I've just released a new book aimed at gifted math students in grades 3-5. It's called Hard Math for Elementary School.

In my day job I'm a professor of economics at MIT, but I'm also the parent of three very talented daughters. When we couldn't find other good options I've coached middle school math teams and held informal classes for elementary and high school students.

The book and accompanying workbook are based on what I did with my elementary school group. It's aimed at gifted students in grades 3-5. The idea is give kids an alternative to moving ahead to do math with a higher grade.

Instead, I try to cover grade-level math in greater depth and cover other things that they'll never see in school. I ask much harder questions to try to build problem solving skills and try to make math fun.

I envision the book as something kids can do with the parents at home or talk their teacher into letting them do at school. (I've found that this is easier than trying to get other accommodations made in reluctant schools.) The book is designed to be very teacher/parent friendly -- the text spends more time than other books explaining the math because there are lots of things many teachers won't really know and I also sell an answer key at a very low price.

For now the book's only for sale on Amazon. If anyone has any questions about the book or anything else I'm happy to answer them.

I like the book - think "AOPS, but different in several respects". (I quickly looked on amazon which shows much of the book.)

Among many good examples:
- p. 26: "put in some addition and subtraction to make round numbers"
- p. 207: "which is bigger: 87/437 or 85/435?" ("funny subtraction").

The author's description above is correct: "Hard Math for Middle School: IMLEM Plus Edition" by the same author also looks good.

(The "middle school" book is probably more competition-oriented, while the "elementary school" book is more like "a must know, solid elementary math".)

Thanks for posting about this book; it looks interesting. Plus (I guess more for the middle school book) nice to know about what kids study for math competitions if you're in an area where there isn't much of that available.

Actually it occurred to me that it would be great to hear what math training you recommend for kids who are gifted in math and thinking about what they might do with it when they grow up--is it just the regular courses that kids need and they will do fine (e.g., algebra, geometry, calculus in high school and then a math or economics major in college??) or are there other areas (for example, coding/programming) that are very helpful in economics or other math careers? I am not mathy myself and my DH is a statistician, so I would like to learn more about what our very mathy DD might be able to do with it and what she might need. Perhaps there is another book or a professional society that provides some guidance in this area?

Dbat, undergrad economics only required calculus here. Most of the work through grad school involves basically the first year university series of calculus, stats (flowing into econometrics), and linear algebra. Programming is usually done in economic/stats software packages like Stata, Eviews, SAS, etc, but knowledge of the basic mechanics of programming going into university would be a considerable advantage.

Feel free to PM me if ever you have any economics questions, as economics was my first love.

The older Middle School book is more competition-oriented. It is similar to AOPS books. Apart from the organization/prose that's optimized for MA math teams, I think of the biggest difference is that my book is more designed to be read and you could skip doing the problems whereas for AOPS books you really have to do the problems as you go along.

The Elementary School book is similar in philosophy -- you read it and it explains things -- but the prose is all about the joys of doing hard math. Unless kids are also extremely advanced verbally it's probably more a read-with-your-parents book. For kids who don't love reading and/or are impatient it can also be a text for the parent -- the kid just works on the workbook worksheets and the parent who has read the text can explain things when they're stuck.

Mostly I think kids just need to learn math up through Calculus BC in high school because they will take the other things they need in college. I'm not a fan of the AP Stats curriculum and also don't see a whole lot of value to learning multivariable calculus while in HS. Many students who go on to graduate school in economics major (or double major) in math as an undergraduate.

If kids are able to do more in middle school/high school I do think it's valuable for kids to get the deeper knowledge of high school math that you get from doing contests like the AMCs. And while this is appropriate for fewer kids, I also think it is also great if kids can get some exposure to abstract math and proofs while it high school.

I am a big fan of learning to program in HS. Kids won't learn the particular languages that economists use, but the skills they learn will translate. When I'm hiring research assistants I care more about programming skills than anything else. You can obviously put this off and learn programming in college, but it can be intimidating to go into a college programming class if you don't have prior experience and a lot of kids end up never learning.

The charter DS will be attending this coming year is touted to be especially beneficial for those who are either behind or else ahead academically.

The principal/teacher was speaking to us at an orientation and she said she was teaching Calculus to an eighth grader.

What do you suggest as a way to market this to charter schools?

Where I live there's no requirement that schools accommodate gifted students, so it's all about trying to persuade the school that what you want is a good idea and not too hard for them.

My first step is always trying to establish credibility so they know I'm not just a pushy parent. I know some people do this with testing. I've taken the approach of letting them get to see my kids in class and spending a lot of time in the school volunteering.

During a school year I start with the classroom teacher. Teachers are happy to have easy problems, so if you explain what you think the needs are, and show them materials that you think solve the problem, they can be happy with this. It's easier to get an accommodation that your child can work on their own during math time than to get them to actively teach something, but I'm always happy if I improve on the status quo. If your class has kids who could form a math group and work on the book together that's obviously better. Having a group of parents supporting each other is also more powerful.

If you're trying to set something up in advance for next year, you do have to go through the principal. Your principal anecdote sounds promising. If she's personally a math teacher, then that's even better and encouraging her read to through the book could be a good method of approach.

Others here probably have more experience than I do.

As the mother of a 7 year-old daughter with exceptional mathematical aptitude, I generally feel saddened and concerned when I see "hard" or "advanced" math books with only boys or principally boys on the cover. You have the appreciation of at least one mom for placing a girl on the cover of your books. Thank you!

gellison--thanks very much for your posts, and the advice. We are trying to get DD into a school that we hope will challenge her in math but are trying also to line up other options in case that does not happen for whatever reason, so it is helpful to hear what others have done.

Mom2277--in addition to the "Hard Math" books, have you seen the Danica McKellar math book series? I guess they're supposed to sound a little like teen girls' gossip magazines in some ways, but DD has enjoyed them and they're mainly about math with some girly stuff thrown in to make it less threatening(??). Which I suppose might be objectionable in some ways but overall it seems like a good thing, especially as just one part of what girls might read about math.