CATawampus!

A Story of Shapes

Illustrated by Jenn Harney
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Hardcover
$18.99 US
On sale Feb 04, 2025 | 32 Pages | 9781635927986

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Math-loving kittens race to build the best robot as they compete in a STEM day at school in this playful picture book that demonstrates the key math concept of identifying shapes.

It’s a wonderful day—because it’s STEM day! Kitties are challenged to build a robot and use the wind to make it move. With circles, squares, triangles, and rectangles, the kitties do their best to tape, glue, and paste—but oh no! The robot won’t move. How might these disorderly cats make sense of all these shapes and build a successful robot? 

Author Ann Marie Stephens draws upon more than 30 years of teaching experience to ensure that readers absorb math while having fun in the adventure-filled CATastrophe Tale series. And Jenn Harney’s hilarious and energetic illustrations capture the antics of these enthusiastic kittens.

Each book in the CATastrophe Tale series includes helpful back matter, which shows readers that, just like the kittens, they use mathematical skills in their everyday lives. Additional titles in the series include CATastrophe!: A Story of Patterns and sCATtered!: A Story of Estimation.
Ann Marie Stephens is the author of several picture books including Scuba Dog, Cy Makes a Friend, and forthcoming titles, Arithmechicks Add Up and Arithmechicks Take Away. She was an elementary teacher for more than 30 years. She was a contributing writer for Kwame Alexander’s The Write Thing, a co-writer for Trait Crate Plus for grades 3 and 5, and has had dozens of original ideas published in Instructor and The Mailbox magazines. When she isn’t writing or teaching, she’s off scuba diving somewhere tropical. Visit annmariestephensbooks.com. View titles by Ann Marie Stephens
Jenn Harney is the illustrator for CATastrophe!: A Story of Patterns, “Smelly” Kelly and His Super Senses: How James Kelly’s Nose Saved the New York City Subway, and Probably a Narwhal. She has worked as both an author and illustrator of children’s literature for over twenty years.She lives in Cleveland, Ohio. Visit her at jkharney.blogspot.com. View titles by Jenn Harney

About

Math-loving kittens race to build the best robot as they compete in a STEM day at school in this playful picture book that demonstrates the key math concept of identifying shapes.

It’s a wonderful day—because it’s STEM day! Kitties are challenged to build a robot and use the wind to make it move. With circles, squares, triangles, and rectangles, the kitties do their best to tape, glue, and paste—but oh no! The robot won’t move. How might these disorderly cats make sense of all these shapes and build a successful robot? 

Author Ann Marie Stephens draws upon more than 30 years of teaching experience to ensure that readers absorb math while having fun in the adventure-filled CATastrophe Tale series. And Jenn Harney’s hilarious and energetic illustrations capture the antics of these enthusiastic kittens.

Each book in the CATastrophe Tale series includes helpful back matter, which shows readers that, just like the kittens, they use mathematical skills in their everyday lives. Additional titles in the series include CATastrophe!: A Story of Patterns and sCATtered!: A Story of Estimation.

Author

Ann Marie Stephens is the author of several picture books including Scuba Dog, Cy Makes a Friend, and forthcoming titles, Arithmechicks Add Up and Arithmechicks Take Away. She was an elementary teacher for more than 30 years. She was a contributing writer for Kwame Alexander’s The Write Thing, a co-writer for Trait Crate Plus for grades 3 and 5, and has had dozens of original ideas published in Instructor and The Mailbox magazines. When she isn’t writing or teaching, she’s off scuba diving somewhere tropical. Visit annmariestephensbooks.com. View titles by Ann Marie Stephens
Jenn Harney is the illustrator for CATastrophe!: A Story of Patterns, “Smelly” Kelly and His Super Senses: How James Kelly’s Nose Saved the New York City Subway, and Probably a Narwhal. She has worked as both an author and illustrator of children’s literature for over twenty years.She lives in Cleveland, Ohio. Visit her at jkharney.blogspot.com. View titles by Jenn Harney

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