As a teacher, I always love fitting in a read aloud whenever and wherever I can~ No matter what the subject, there can always be story to pair with the lesson of the day!

I believe interdisciplinary teaching is highly effective, and teaching and showing littles how different learning concepts relate and connect can help build knowledge. Now, throw in a little *social emotional learning* into the narrative mix, and you have a rich read aloud that’s applicable to multiple facets of littles’ learning and lives.

That’s why I’m thrilled to feature the children’s book, *Pairs of People* by Jeanne & Mark K. Shriver, a children’s book that combines Math Skills, Literacy Skills, and Social Emotional Learning Skills ~ all in one story about Multiplying Goodness!

Math Skills

When I taught 3rd grade, one of the first concepts we review before launching into our multiplication unit is Doubling. *Pairs of People* would be the perfect book to launch the lesson and give the learners a meaningful context to the math concept they are about to learn. Because not only does this read aloud provide visual and structured support for doubling, as you are about to see, it also inspires littles to share acts of kindness and take an active role in their community.

In *Pairs of People,* readers discover how when we work together, our efforts are *multiplied.* While every effort to help others matters, no matter how small, the more we work together ~ the bigger the projects and the more we can do to help the world around us. This concept is illustrated by pairs of people sequentially increasing on each page and partaking in an act of service.

For example, “8 pairs of people work hard until it’s dark.” At the bottom of the page, a horizontal chart highlights the different pairs, and reinforces how many people total 8 pairs of people are, while also providing the multiplication sentence on the far right. The vibrant pictures illustrate the different pairs, allowing readers to count the number of people in total for extra support. This format allows for multiple access points to the math in the book, allowing teachers and adults to differentiate for different levels of understanding.

Included at the end of the book is a math challenge, perfect for checking to see learner’s understanding of the doubling and pairs concept. Have learners solve the problem on a piece of paper and show their work so that you’ll get a look into their problem solving thought process and what mathematical strategies they are using: do they understand multiplication, are they relying on repeated addition, etc.

Literacy Skills

As for the Literacy Skills, the narrative has a playful rhyme, perfect for reinforcing phonics and rhyming patterns. Encourage readers to read along with you, or guess the rhyming word as they listen along and use the illustration clues to fill in the blank. The narrative also follows the same 4-line pattern and rhyming scheme throughout the book, starting off with the number of pairs of people, and then explaining what they do. Have little learners write their own page to add to the story, using a different number pair, such as 14 or 15 pairs of people, and making sure their 4 lines follow the ABCB rhyming pattern.

Social Emotional Skills

I mostly appreciate that this book also incorporates Social Emotional Learning. With each act of service portrayed in the story, have learners share if they have ever done anything similar, and then encourage readers to choose a kind act they read about from the story to try to do themselves later that day or week. Brainstorm other acts of goodness that pairs of people could do, and throw in some number sense skills by asking learners how many pairs of people would be required for the different Kind acts they brainstorm. Plus, at the end of the book, there is a certificate for learners to record how they can make a positive difference!

As you can see, there are so many different ways to extend this book beyond its pages~ with extension activities ranging from math problem-solving on paper to real-world application. I highly recommend you snag a copy of *Pairs of People* for your own little learners, and let me know how you bring this story to life!

Interactive Read Aloud Video

Or, you can also read along with MaiStoryBook YouTube for an interactive, shared-reading read aloud of *Pairs of People*~ where I ask questions throughout the story, point out main themes and ideas, and introduce vocabulary to keep little learns engaged and participating throughout the story.

To learn more about *Pairs of People* by Jeanne and Mark K. Shriver, check out their website: https://www.4u2bbooksandmedia.com/bookshelf/

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I’d love to  see and hear about your own reading adventures you are having with your little learners, so please share your story times below in the comments ~ Or Tag me on Instagram @MaiStoryBookLibrary , FaceBook , find me on TikTok, or contact me via email . I’d love to hear from you!~*