At 好色先生鈥檚 School of Education, Dr. Peter Kalenda is bringing math to life through stories. This semester, 28 teacher candidates are using 10 Gulab Jamuns by Sandhya Acharya as a playful entry point to teaching addition with regrouping to first- and second-grade students.
Thanks to support from the NEA鈥檚 Learning and Leadership Grant, every teacher candidate received a free copy of the book. The grant, co-authored by Dr. Kalenda and Dr. Kathleen Olmstead of SUNY Brockport, focuses on helping future childhood educators build global competency skills through storybooks that highlight diverse representation.
In the lesson, students meet Idu and Adu from 10 Gulab Jamuns and are then challenged to count and add a variety of Indian sweet treats鈥攋ust like the characters in the story. This lesson's inquiry-based approach not only strengthens math skills but also invites children to explore culture and community through food, storytelling, and play.