A Name of Their Own

Welcome to the city of Mathematics! A place where numbers come to life and live lives of their own. Have you ever wondered how numbers got their names? How did a number end up being a one, ten, hundred, thousand, or million? Who decided what to call them, and how are they different? How do you tell them apart? Come along on this fantasy story, and learn how it all began.Place Value Street is just a quiet ordinary street where numbers live, play, and enjoy life. Just like everyone else in Mathematics City, the numbers get up each day and go to work at the Numeration Factory. It's a good life, except for one thing: Mr. Infinity, the numeration president, is constantly struggling to get the number he wants to come when he calls. All the numbers share the name ones, tens, or hundreds, so when he calls for ones, he gets ones of every shape and size. It's very frustrating! Then one day, gossip breaks out at the factory, and everyone assumes it is the number that they know. Something must be done! In an act of desperation, Mr. Infinity comes up with a plan that will change all the numbers' lives, end the gossip, and make it so much easier to work with numbers. Learn all about Place Value Street, the names of each number, why they have their names, how to tell them apart, read numbers of different sizes, and a lesson on gossip in this imaginative tale of Mathematics City.

-- Melinda Krise