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Sir Cumference and the Fracton Faire
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Sir Cumference and the Fracton Faire

About the Book

Join Sir Cumference and the gang for more wordplay, puns, and problem solving in the clever math adventure that introduces readers to the concept of fractons.

Sir Cumference and Lady Di discover "Fracton numbers" while purchasing cloth and cheese at the Fracton Faire. While two-fourths may seem like the same as one-half, in truth it denotes two parts of one-half, or two quarters of the whole. But the real mystery is the fact that items at the fair keep disappearing, and Sir C, Lady Di, and the Earl of Fracton must set a numeric trap for the thief, teaching an important lesson along the way about the comparative size of fractions.
Puns--both literal and visual--abound in this fun adventure story with beloved characters and a solid pedagogical foundation.


A fun little math adventure that introduces the basics of fractions to early elementary audiences.
— School Library Journal
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Praise for Sir Cumference and the Fracton Faire

Lady Di of Ameter, Sir Cumference, and Reginald Patron, the Earl of Fracton, visit the local faire, where they learn about fractions through the sale of cheese, cloth, and stolen merchandise. Concepts such as denominators, numerators, and equivalents are clearly explained through interactions with the various merchants. Some text is in dialogue balloons, for instance, during the puppet show and as the thieves search for fractions. The text uses several different terms to reinforce the concepts of fractions in spoken language. The soft, muted, color sketches are detailed and vary in size. Fractions are scattered throughout the illustrations. The white wax on yellow cloth used to show numerators and denominators makes the text a bit hard to read. The use of the word fracton, instead of the proper spelling, detracts from the math lesson. VERDICT Suitable for all libraries, this is a fun little math adventure that introduces the basics of fractions to early elementary audiences.
--School Library Journal
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Excerpt

Sir Cumference and the Fracton Faire

“Fine fabrics!” “Fresh cheese!” Baa, baa!

It was the opening morning of the Fracton Faire.

“Such a merry atmosphere!” said Lady Di of Ameter. She and Sir Cumference strolled jauntily through the crowds with their friend Reginald Parton, the Earl of Fracton.

The two men stopped to watch a sword swallower while Lady Di wandered over to a cloth merchant’s booth. She ran her hand over a length of fabric. “How perfectly soft!” she exclaimed.

The merchant smiled. “You can buy all or part,” she said, pointing to the sign above her.

“What do those numbers mean?” Lady Di asked.

“They’re Fracton numbers, my lady,” the woman answered. “They are used to measure equal pieces of something, such as this beautiful cloth.”

Sir Cumference Series

Sir Cumference Speaks Volumes
Sir Cumference and the 100 PerCent Goose Chase
Sir Cumference Gets Decima's Point
Sir Cumference and the Fracton Faire
Sir Cumference and the Roundabout Battle
Sir Cumference Classroom Activities
Sir Cumference and the Off-the-Charts Dessert
Sir Cumference and the Viking's Map
Sir Cumference and All the King's Tens
Sir Cumference and the Isle of Immeter
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About the Author

Cindy Neuschwander
Cindy Neuschwander is a native Californian born in San Diego. She received a BA in international studies from Willamette University and an MA in education from Stanford University. She has been teaching since 1975, both at the high school and elementary levels. As a mathematics education specialist, Cindy sought ways to make math fun, interesting, and comprehensible to her students. In 1992, while living in England, Cindy began working on her first book with this goal in mind. Sir Cumference and the First Round Table took five years to reach publication, but it remains a very popular book for its presentation of math concepts as well as for its amusing and exciting story. More by Cindy Neuschwander
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About the Author

Wayne Geehan
Wayne Geehan, a graduate of the Art Institute of Boston, has been illustrating books, board games, and jigsaw puzzles for over 20 years. He is the illustrator of Multiplying Menace and Cut Down to Size at High Noon, as well as the Sir Cumference series. When he isn't painting in his Massachusetts studio, he enjoys being with his family, reading, and researching his family's genealogy. More by Wayne Geehan
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