This book is great for math and looking at numbers in different way! This is really helpful to students to understand different math concepts. The pictures even described everything really well too! ( )

Long ago, when all the animals lived together in peace, the mighty leopard was king of the jungle, and all the animals respected their king. But it came time to name a successor and all the animals vied for the position. Derived from a Liberian folk tale, this story shows that being strong is not the same as being smart and illustrates how clever math can solve a problem.

I loved Two Ways to Count to Ten for three reasons. First, the plot is simple yet effective. Essentially, the king of the jungle arranges a competition for all the animals in his kingdom. The plot chronicles each animal's attempt at the challenge. The plot comes together in the end when the "weak" antelope uses his brain to complete the challenge. The straightforward nature of the plot made it enjoyable to read and easy to understand.

Second, the illustrations in this book were fantastic. The illustrator used a combination of water color and colored pencils in this book. In addition, the illustrator used bright, vivacious colors. The illustrations added to the story because they conveyed the lighthearted tone of the text.

Third, this book subtly pushes readers to broaden their perspective. For example, the king says at the end of the book, "Remember, my friends, it is not always the biggest or the strongest, but sometimes the cleverest that wins the prize." As such, the "big picture" of this book is valuing intelligence and creative thinking. ( )

Two ways to count to ten teaches students to using different methods. All the animals throw the spear and try to get to ten counting by ones. None of the animals are able to get to ten until the antelope. The antelope throws the spear and counts to 10 by twos. This is a good book to introduce skip counting.

This was an interesting way to incorporate a story into a counting book. Counting books can often be boring and repetitive, but I though the story of acquiring a new king was super creative. ( )