Twelve Ways to Get to Eleven

by Eve Merriam, Bernie Karlin (Illustrator)

Twelve double spreads take young readers on a counting adventure of adding to eleven.

Genres: Mathematics, Picture Books, Counting, Childrens, Animals

32 pages, Library Binding

Published August 1, 1996

About the author

Born as Eve Moskovitz, American poet and writer

Reviews

[Brittany Sammons · Rating 4 out of 5]

12 Ways to Get to 11 is a charming story about how numbers interact with one another. It provides multiple ways to get the number 11, at some points using more than one addend. It does not follow a particular story line, but rather jumps around to different scenes show uses pictures to show different ways to make 11. The pictures are colorful and engaging, and kids would be sure to enjoy the different backgrounds.

I would use this book for grades 1-3, to help with the skill of structuring numbers. One aspect for math I am trying to help my students with is being flexible with numbers. This book does a great job at using multiple addends to help students realize there are so many ways to make a number. After spending time in this book, I would use a math rack to create different combinations to other numbers. I would also incorporate ELA into this math skill by having students create their own number stories based on a number of choice. For students who need more advanced number structuring, I would start with three or four digit numbers. For students who struggle with number structuring, I would keep them in the 1-10 range.

[Lauren Roewe · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book features different ways to add several simple numbers to equal 11 using a mixture of novel/sill and everyday life situations.
The illustrator used solid lines to create simple shapes to make interaction with counting clearly established individual objects on the page easier.

I would read this book to a younger group of children learning simple addition who would also still be engaged by the simplistic illustration style.

12 Ways To Get To 11 is about counting variations of numbers that add up to equal 11 by counting certain elements or objects of different snapshot-like settings/situations.

[Randa Norton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 4/5
Genre: Picture Book (Counting)
Audience: 3 years – 8 years

A book that brings illustrations and mathematics together in order to help children count.

1. This book fits in the category of a counting picture book because the book presents different ways to get to 11.
2. The illustrator used the elements of color and shape to bring this book to life.
3. I would most likely use this book in an one on one setting with a child learning to or interested in counting and mathematics.

[Kaleigh Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an interactive fun way for children to learn to count. Instead of just going through and counting the kids have to search and find where 11 is through the duration of the story which makes it painlessly educational.
This book fits in a counting category because it is teaching kids how to get to 11.
The line even on the front cover of this book makes it pleasing for kids to look at and easy for them to count.
You could use this book in a group setting of young readers also learning to count, you can kill two birds with one stone with this book.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute, but might possibly be confusing, too challenging, for what seems to be the intended audience judging by the simple & bright illustrations. However, if you've got a budding smart-aleck on your hands, toss 'em this and see what they say.

Certainly valuable if you can play with your child, use this as inspiration for an extra-curricular or homeschool lesson. It might inspire them to realize that math is so much cooler than just plain counting, too.

[babyhippoface · Rating 3 out of 5]

Simple picture book demonstrating how different numbers all add up to 11. Page one: 9 pinecones and 2 acorns. Page two: 6 peanuts and 5 pieces of popcorn. Page three: 4 banners, 5 rabbits, 1 pitcher and 1 bouquet of flowers. Get the picture?

[Spencer · Rating 2 out of 5]

2022
Gift from Harper's grandmother

[Madeleine Muth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Title (italicize): 12 Ways to Get to 11
Author: Eve Merriam
Illustrator (if separate from author): Berney Karlin
Genre: Concept Book
Theme(s): Math
Opening line/sentence (type directly from text):1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 ,8, 9,10,11,12.
Brief Book Summary (2-3 sentences in your own words): This book help kids learn their counting skill by creating an interesting animals and objects.
Response to Two Professional Reviews (3-4 sentences in your own words): Simon and Schuster says that this book is great for children to count. This is great for the classroom and gives many ideas for the children to work with. Family Math also describes this book as a great math book!
Tell Me Framework (4 sentences in your own words):
Like(s): I like the examples the they use in the book.
Dislike(s):None
Patterns(s):
Puzzle(s):None
Consideration of Instructional Application (3-4 sentences in your own words): You can have the children identify the numbers to count a picture or make a picture that uses 12 items. You can also have the children play a counting game

[Cameron Becnel · Rating 4 out of 5]

12 ways to get to 11 is a mathematical book written by Eve Merriam and Illustrated by Ernie Karlin. This book as the title states is about 12 unique ways to count to 11. The highlight for this book must be the writing for doing an incredible job in making ways to count to 11. I like how the writing gets very clever with each page, such as “Go past four corners and two traffic lights then past the house with two chimneys and the garage with two cars and a bicycle. Now look you’re at Eleventh street.” The illustrations are simple looking with colorful shapes that make the pages pop out a bit. I’d probably recommend this book to kindergarten-3rd grade students as they can enjoy how to count to eleven and how to add up to eleven. The writing can seem a bit complex for younger readers to understand but I’m sure they could get the hang of understanding how to count. I give this book a 4 for its interesting writing in counting to eleven, and simple illustrations.

[Katie Renner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read aloud found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJJ1H...

I would use this book for a kindergarten or first grade classroom.

I think this book is so much fun! This book is a great way to show kids that there is not only one way to get to 11, but 12! This book uses kids adding skills, as they are putting together different combinations that equal 11. This book is a perfect way to take young readers on a journey where they are walked through all the different ways to get 11. This book has lots of pictures, and the words are in a large font so that kids can easily follow along with the words. This book really helps to further their thoughts, and help them to see that this is also something that can be done with other numbers (EX: how many ways to get to 12? And students can think about all the different number combinations they can make to get 12.)

[Dina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who said learning mathematical skills can not be fun? In this fun story, readers discover that adding does not always entail a series of jumbled numbers and math signs. As the story progresses, readers interact with a little girl counting nine pinecones and two acorns. At the circus, they count six peanut shells and five pieces of popcorn, and even a magician's hat filled with different goodies like four banners, five rabbits, one pitcher of water, and a pitcher of water. Beyond the book offering a fun way to learn, it builds to prepare a mind to begin counting all the items children interact with and serves as an excellent tool for adults to provide an interactive read-aloud to their little ones.

[Isabella Marrier · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun book for young readers and counters. This story has a variety of examples on different ways to count to 11 by using addition. It is fun and exciting because of the use of animals and other silly illustrations. The colors are bright and welcoming with real life examples used for children who would be counting. I enjoyed the double page spread the most that had the picture of the boat. Readers are counting the masts, sails, ladders, flags, anchor, and life preserver on this scene. I also liked the double page spread that has the piglets being fed by their mother. This is something children would see at the fair, zoo, or farms. I recommend this book for any person learning to count.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book does an excellent job of introducing students to problem-solving scenarios. The basic picture book discusses several ways that numbers add up to 11. On page one, for example, there are 9 pinecones and 2 acorns. Page two lists six peanuts and five pieces of popcorn. This concept picture book would be ideal for reading during circle time with kids learning to add numbers 1-10. The artist, Bernie Karlin utilizes vibrant colors to keep the reader interested. The colors employed aid the reader's ability to see the content on the page. Karlin depicts the animals, landscapes, and items on the pages in both warm and cold hues.

[Michelle Bellotti · Rating 3 out of 5]

"12 Ways to Get to 11" helps children learn math without fully realizing it. The author of this book makes math fun and incorporates the interests of children. While working on their math skills like counting and adding, the book also helps the child with spatial reasoning, specifically when the book talked about "past the two red lights" "by the house with 2 chimneys." The children are learning directions and spatial reasoning as to where objects are in relation to others. This is definitely a good and beneficial books to get children to work on their math skills without fully realizing they are doing math.

[Mama Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this to my 3.5 and 5-year-old daughters who are counting and adding anything they come across right now. The book doesn't have a plot line, but rather shows examples of how objects can be added to reach 11. Even though my kids love math, they did not ask for a repeat of this book. I think the fact that the addends were often incongruent added to the disjointed feel of the book. For example, sails, masts, lifesavers, and anchors were addends on one page but boat windows were not.

[Julian A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great early elementary level book for some basic understanding of math. The illustrations and story depict various ways that you can add to get to 11. "In the hen hard: five eggs, three cracking open, two beaks poking out, and one just hatched." 5 + 3 + 2 + 1 = 11. My kids are a little too young for this book at the moment, but this can be a great tool for teaching basic math to young kids. The illustrations are bright and colorful.

[Becky B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Readers count a variety of combinations of objects to get up to 11 items. Like 9 pinecones and 2 acorns from the forest.

A very simple counting book that also introduces adding multiple numbers, for example the 3rd spread has 4 banners, 5 rabbits, 1 pitcher, and 1 bouquet. Readers could count or change the words into an equation to add them up. Both the illustrations and the font are large and the text is dyslexic-friendly.

[Yesenia Sandoval · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this is a great book to help children to learn how to count objects in the world and around them. This counting book called “12 Ways to Get to 11” shows many examples about breaking apart, the number 11 in various ways such as nine pinecones and two acorns. Also, helps students to practice simple adding operations.

[Julia Ridings · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great book that shows there are many ways to get to the same number. The pictures are great and go along with the story well. In math, and particularly when collecting data, everyone's data is going to be different. This is a good book that shows there are many ways to get to the same number, but also that everyone will not always have the same data when data is individualized.

[Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a great story that shows how numbers interact with one another in many different ways. It shows how to get to the number 11 through addition and is engaging in its story and illustrations. This is a good resource to show students that there is more than one way to solve a problem.

[Darlena Glenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book that is really teachable and should be read over and over again exploring the different ways to make 11. A student asked me for counting books and I found this one in the library collection. I am so glad I found it.

[Jennifer Hopkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This clever book not only teaches and breaks down 12 different way to break down 11 but each page is a new learning experience. love the exposure to new vocabulary such as boat parts and sets of twins and triplets.

[Debi Cates (not getting notifications GRrrrr) · Rating 3 out of 5]

The littlest Little is 6, going into first grade. She announced this book was "too simple" (although she picked it out as first to read together among today's stack). After that, we tried to make it a tad more challenging by letting her find all the things that were counted to make 11. Still too simple, she said.

Still she liked it. Who doesn't like realizing you got smarter in just a summer?

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very charming counting book for thinking creatively to get to 11!

[Christine Grant · Rating 3 out of 5]

Countdown to Kindergarten: Counting

Counting up to 11 using different objects in different settings. Decent but obviously repetitive.

[Dana · Rating 3 out of 5]

We loved the illustrations throughout. But this text was too juvenile for my child despite it being recommended in his math curriculum.

[Glynnis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Library Book.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining counting book. Great way to reinforce math skills.

[Timothy Morrison]

A kid's book that really makes you think

[Elisia Hood · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book uses real world applications kids see every day to engage them in counting to the number 11. Super fun and a great addition to your future classrooms!