Devin and Callie Shroff of Summit submitted questions to the new Bedtime Math book ‘How Many Guinea Pigs Can Fit on a Plane?’
SUMMIT, NJ — Instead of a bedtime story, Devin and Callie Shroff of Summit enjoy bedtime math.
The children receive daily emails which consist of stories or videos followed by four math questions aimed at different levels of learning. “Bedtime Math” is also a book series by Laura Overdeck, and the second book, “How Many Guinea Pigs Can Fit on a Plane?,” was published by Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group and hit bookstores on Tuesday, June 6.
About six months ago, Devin and Callie Shroff’s father Ajay, who works with his children on the “Bedtime Math” series, received an email requesting submissions for questions to be featured in the new book. Both of his children wrote questions, which he submitted on their behalf. They were among 50 children whose questions were chosen to appear in the book.
“My question is, ‘How fast does a ball travel in sports such as tennis, golf, baseball and lacrosse?’ ” Callie Shroff, 10, a fifth-grader at Franklin Elementary School, told LocalSource over the phone on May 31. “I came up with the idea when I was playing tennis. I found it interesting that a tennis ball can go over 150 miles per hour!”
Callie’s question appears on page 82 of the new book. Her 7-year-old brother, Devin, a first-grader at Franklin, secured a more prominent position for his.
“My question is, ‘How much pizza is eaten by everyone in the United States each year?’ ” Devin Shroff said. “I thought of it because I had pizza that night for dinner. I was super amazed because I never thought my name would appear in a book.”
Devin’s question appears on the book’s back cover.
While the siblings said they enjoy art the most in school, they appreciate math — especially for the connection it has to art.
“We do the ‘Bedtime Math’ email every night before bed,” Callie Shroff said. “There’s a story, or video, which we love, followed by questions. It makes me excited for math the next day!”
The bedtime routine even helps them fall asleep so they are better prepared to tackle whatever the next day might bring.
Although “Bedtime Math” is available as an app, the Shroff family enjoys the email version. They just received a copy of the new book, too.
“The cover makes me curious,” Ajay Shroff told LocalSource on May 31. “It has a cute title. We even tried to start answering some of the questions.”
Some of the other questions featured in the book include “How many bees does it take to make a jar of honey?” and “When will I be a billion seconds old?”
“Last night’s email was about which came first — the chicken or the egg,” Ajay Schroff said. “We didn’t get into the philosophy behind it, but they asked questions about the numbers of eggs and chickens. The stories or videos might pertain to a holiday or current event depending on what day it is, but most times it’s just a random subject.”