Description: Third-grader Coco is bad at math, but when the class math whiz finds her hiding in a bathroom, unwilling to face the day's multiplication tables, their caring teacher tells the pair of them that it's okay for people to have different strengths and weaknesses--and shows Coco tools that make learning math fun. fun.
Brief description: Georgie Edwards Hanlin was born and raised in San Francisco, where she attended Katherine Delmar Burke School and The Branson School. She has a bachelor's degree from Scripps College and spent her junior year studying abroad in Paris. Georgie has a master's degree in education from Teachers College, Columbia University. She is the coauthor of Benchmark, a young adult novel. Her writing has been featured in The New York Times/International Herald Tribune, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, the San Francisco Chronicle, and NPR. Georgie has worked as an educator, both as a classroom teacher and as an administrator, for her entire adult life.
Review Quotes:
"Math anxiety is real. This book teaches children self-advocacy and self-acceptance, while raising awareness for math teachers. What might seem like a fun game for some could be a "nightmare" for others. Every child who is afraid of numbers and every math teacher should read this book. It is so important to avoid creating math anxious children and parents; math teachers are on the front lines of defense in the war against math anxiety."
Marizza Bailey, BASIS Scottsdale math teacher named by President Obama as a recipient of the 2016 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching
""In this touching story, the all-important lessons about being confident, accepting differences, sharing fears and learning about yourself are experienced by young Coco as she struggles to do math. As a finance executive, this strikes such a cord. It's imperative in business to play to your strengths and rely on others to supplement your weaknesses so that you complement each other's skills. And as a mom, I hope my young children will gain insight and confidence from reading this charming story."
Katrina O'Connell, Chief Financial Officer, Old Navy
"A wonderful and heartwarming story about a girl who discovers that everyone learns in his or her own way and that's what makes learning fun! It's a true celebration of individual differences and demystifies the learning process for even the most hesitant of little mathematicians."
Rebecca Barker Bridges, educational therapist and author of Meet Stanley: The Reading Dog