Math Monday - The Math Chef

We had some fun back in May with Joan D'Amico's The Science Chef, which you can read about here, and here, so I was happy to discover she also has a book called The Math Chef, with over 60 math activities, and recipes for kids.

Now that I've had a time to read through it, and try out a couple of the recipes with the kids, I think I'd have to say it's more of a cookbook, than a math book, but as far as kids' cookbooks go, it's a pretty good one. And, it does serve to highlight, and bring to the kids' attention, the amount of math they use in everyday cooking, and baking activities.

Each chapter does start with a math concept like "Metric Mania", "English Exchange", "Ruler Rampage", and so on. Then, there's a short worksheet like activity, with answers at the back, and each recipe in the chapter, highlights that particular math skill.

My children rolled their eyes at the activities, but thanks to the bold print, did not miss the math concepts highlighted in each recipe. I don't think you'd want to use this as your main math text, but it would work nicely as a fun reinforcement, or summer bridge activity.

As to the cookbook parts, there's a very thorough description of the chef's "tools of the trade" at the front, as well as definitions of the various cooking skills, such as chopping, mincing, dicing and slicing. There is a glossary at the back of both cooking/baking, and math terms, and an informative section on nutrition.

The recipes are a good mix of desserts, salads, and entrees. And, even the desserts sneak in some healthy ingredients like whole wheat flour, or wheat germ. So, you don't have to worry about rotting your kids' stomachs while developing their brains.

I was not paid for this review, but I do recommend the book.

For more math themed activities, be sure to check out this week's Math Monday blog hop, hosted by Joyful Learner.

It's great to be a homeschooler.