One Is a Snail, Ten Is a Crab

Why It's On Our Shelf

The genius of this book is that it teaches addition and number composition while still being accessible to kids who are just learning to count. Counting by feet creates a natural progression, and then combining animals to make larger numbers introduces addition in a way that feels like discovery, not drilling. The beach setting keeps it visually appealing, and the animal variety keeps it interesting. It's the kind of math book that doesn't announce itself as math, which is probably why kids don't resist it. The concepts stick because they're embedded in something fun.