Arithme-Tickle: An Even Number of Odd Riddle-Rhymes

 

Readers Guide created by Brittney Anderson

Lewis, J. Patrick.  2010.  Arithme-Tickle:  An Even Number of Odd Riddle-Rhymes.  Houghton Mifflin. 

Recommended age levels:  8-10

Summary of Book:

This zany rhyming book is a compilation of 19 poems all dealing with numbers.  Some of them are just fun rhyming riddles having to do with numbers, but most of them are riddles to solve.  Never fear though, if you get stuck on a tough problem then the answers are written in mirror writing at the bottom of the page. 

Review Excerpts/Awards:

Booklist - "The humorous tone of the rhyming text and the variety of puzzles will definitely add to the fun for those who are ready for a challenge."    

 School Library Journal - "A new book by a wordplay master always adds up to fun."                                        

Questions to ask before reading: 
What does arithmetic mean to you?  If I say we are reading a book about arithmetic, what do you think the book will be about? 
What are some examples of even numbers?   
What are some examples of using rhythm and rhyme?  Does using rhyme make poems more interesting to read?

Suggestions for reading poems aloud:
Have a different student read each riddle aloud, then after each riddle have a class discussion about what they think the answer is and why.  Have the student that came up with the correct answer come up to the board and show how they solved it.
Have each student read a different line of one of the rhyming poems to make it come together as one riddle.
Split the class up into groups of four, and using a poem as a model, have them create their own riddle rhyming poems and have their classmates try to solve them.

Follow up activities:
Math - As a warm-up activity the next day, post the answer to a problem on the board for the students to figure out the problem.  Have them solve it by creating a word problem from the answer, and then they can try to turn into a rhyming riddle word problem. 

Science - Have the students write a rhyming poem about their favorite science subject.  The poems can be red aloud to the class and then put in a binder as a class project. 

Writing - Give each student a classic poem and have him or her change the words around to make it involve numbers (for example:  great = gr8). 

Related Websites/Blogs:

Library Pow Wow         
 http://librarypowwow.blogspot.com/2010/07/book-review-1-genre-3-arithme-tickle.html 

J. Patrick Lewis’ Website 
http://www.jpatricklewis.com/

Scholastic Website 
http://teacher.scholastic.com/products/instructor/mathriddles.htm

Related books: 
Other poetry books by J. Patrick Lewis
Lewis, J. Patrick.  2009.  Spot the Plot:  A Riddle Book of Book Riddles.  Chronicle Books.
Lewis, J. Patrick.  2009.  Countdown to Summer:  A Poem for Every Day of the School Year.  Little, Brown.
Lewis, J. Patrick.  2003.  Swan Song:  Poems of Extinction.  Creative Edition.

Other Mathematics riddle books:
Tang, Greg.  2004.  The Grapes of Math.  Scholastic Paperbacks. 
Hopkins, Lee Bennett.  2001.  Marvelous Math:  A Book of Poems.  Simon and Schuster.
Tang, Greg.  2005.  Math for All Seasons:  Mind-Stretching Math Riddles.  Scholastic Paperbacks.

Nonfiction books written by J. Patrick Lewis:
Lewis, J. Patrick.  2005.  Galileo’s Universe.  Creative Editions.
Lewis, J. Patrick.  2006.  Black Cat Bone:  The Life of Blues Legend Robert Johnson.  Creative Editions.
Lewis, J. Patrick.  2004.  The Stolen Smile.  Creative Editions.