One Grain of Rice

Reader Response: 
This "mathematical folktale" is a wonderful book for readers of all ages. With easy to understand language, beautiful illustrations and theme of serving others, Demi provides a heartfelt life lesson paired with an introduction to a difficult math concept. In the story, a witty peasant girl outsmarts the all powerful raja of her village. She asks for one grain of rice and then asks the raja to double the amount from the day before. By day 30, her ration of rice has grown exponentially and she possesses all the rice from the village. Instead of keeping the rice as the raja had done, she distributes the rice evenly to all the village so that everyone is fed. There are many lessons to be learned here and the concept of exponential growth is clear and easy to understand.

Evaluator Response: 
Demi uses a simple folktale to teach math, introduce/explore Indian culture, and discuss the power of social responsibility. The plain language and use of illustrations make it easy to understand the story so that students can focus on the lesson at hand. Using this book with older children can bring on more in-depth conversations regarding wealth distribution, feeding the hungry and abuse of power.

Teacher Response: 
On a basic level, this book could be used to explore the idea of doubling an amount. As a middle school teacher, I would use this book to explore the idea of exponential growth of a function. Have students explore why the raja was surprised when the baskets of rice kept rapidly increasing. Why did the raja not realize that he had been outsmarted? If Rani (the girl) would have asked for the same amount using different words, would the raja have agreed? Students could be asked to graph the increasing amount of rice. How does this graph compare with a linear function? These are all difficult concepts to grasp in the math classroom and this book provides an excellent example to explore these ideas.

Literacy Coach Response: 
Used in a middle school or older classroom, this book is a simple story where students can focus on comprehension of the story. Because the reading level is lower, students can realize the classroom where the book is being read and be on the lookout for math concepts rather than decoding words, new vocabulary, or a complicated story. The colorful pictures help to emphasize the dramatic outcome of the girl's request and can be used to reiterate the impact of exponential growth. This simple story is a great way to expose students to a complex concept and teach them to serve others at the same time.