Jefferson Measures a Moose

If you are looking for a way to make math fun for kids, make sure to check out Mara Rockliff's book, Jefferson Measures a Moose. Children will learn how Jefferson loved asking questions about numbers like how much (quantity), how far (distance) and how long (duration)? He often jotted down measurements as he went about his business.

Then one day he read a book by a French author, Buffon, who expressed opinions about America that Jefferson knew were false (even Jefferson had to battle fake news!).  Buffon said people and animals were much smaller in America than Europe. Jefferson could not let those assertions go unchallenged so he wrote a book of his own with data from his beloved United States.

Children will enjoy discovering the great lengths, that Jefferson went to in proving Buffon wrong. He even enlisted a few famous friends to help him out. I found this story a very fascinating look at one of our founding fathers. It's a great living book offering children real world glimpses at the importance of math in everyday life!

I have to give a shout out to the illustrator of Jefferson Measures a Moose. The incredibly detailed and highly realistic pictures were truly delightful!  And evidently very recognizable--my teen glanced over while I was reviewing the book and said, "that is the illustrator of [another book we own]."  And she was absolutely correct!  If you care to follow other works by this illustrator, check out his website. 

Disclaimer: I received a free digital copy of Jefferson Measures a Moose from NetGalley for the purpose of review. No other compensation was received and the opinions expressed are my own.