GENRE: Humor, Character Driven, STEM/STEAM
WORDS: 516
Query:
Dear PBParty Judges, Agents, and Editors,
Thank you all for this wonderful opportunity, and your thoughtful consideration of DEAR MATH, a humorous and heartfelt story for readers 4 to 8 years-old that layers STEAM concepts of math and language arts with SEL themes of growth mindset and friendship.
When his teacher assigns unusual pen pals, Cal hopes to make a faraway friend. Instead, he’s partnered with…MATH?! (Who even uses math? Not Cal!) But by Valentine’s Day, the letter exchange helps this reluctant mathematician recognize Math’s connection to things he already loves, and realize he’s made a friend he can count on.
DEAR MATH shares the theme of math aversion found in I’m Trying To Love Math (Penguin Young Readers), but adds language arts, a holiday hook of Valentine’s Day, and targets slightly younger readers with a narrative that introduces STEAM topics such as patterns, shapes, measuring, telling time, and counting. As in Reindeer Remainders (Sourcebooks, 2024), a teacher plays an important role, and like The Great Mathemachicken: Sing High, Sing Crow (Holiday House, 2024), DEAR MATH shows how we use math in everyday life, and demonstrates that it is indeed all around us.
I’m a Los Angeles–based former journalist who now writes fiction and nonfiction picture books. My debut, ENOUGH TO SHARE, is scheduled for an October, 2025 release by Tielmour Press. My second picture book, A RIVER IS…will be published by Bushel & Peck Books in 2026. I’m active in SCBWI and Julie Hedlund’s 12 x 12, and have a degree in English literature, and a masters in journalism. I also spent sixteen years volunteering in a children’s library, and (almost) mastered the Dewey Decimal system.
Thank you so much for your time and participation in PBParty!
Excerpt:
Cal’s pencil drummed.
His head drooped.
Uggghhhhhh. How many million more minutes til Math was over?
“Hand in your work,” Mrs. Wilson chirped.
Finally!
“Our next project takes imagination,” Mrs. Wilson said. “Everyone, pick a pen pal from this jar.”
“I got Principal Ruiz!”
“I got the Moon!”
Cal crossed his fingers. “I got . . .”
“MATH?”
Cal’s pencil snapped.
“Maybe you’ll make a new friend.” Mrs. Wilson winked.
What inspired you to write this story & what do you have in common with it:
Like Cal, I preferred almost any subject to math, so it was no surprise that my fifth grade daughter felt the same. But when she became insecure about her math skills, a wise, creative teacher thought she’d be less intimidated if she made “friends” with Math. The teacher encouraged her to write letters to “Math” that the teacher kindly answered. This gentle approach using my daughter’s strength, language arts, helped her overcome some of her “math phobia.”
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