Reviews and Endorsements

Library Media Connection-January 2012
“This beautifully illustrated, rhythmic book uses insects and their body parts to teach the beginnings of multiplication.  It can be simply used as a picture book with young children or used to immerse children in the world of insects and math.  It is designed to be read with an adult in a guided approach.  The answers to the multiplication problems appear in the appended Insect Multiplication Table.  Six different “insect” activities are also in the appendix.  The “insect life cycles” and “compare and contrast” sections are especially noteworthy, encouraging thought and making connections.  In addition, online sources are available.  A perfect way to cross the disciplines of math and science that shows students how nature uses math in a fun, picture book way.  While older students may find the singsong rhymes childish, the appendix is more appropriate for them.” –Bridget Slayden, Educational Reviewer, Rogersville, Missouri

School Library Journal-December 2011
"Multiplication problems from1 to 11 are all presented in short, four-line rhymes. Each problem sits on a spread vibrantly illustrated with a group of realistic insects. A “For Creative Minds” section includes facts about insect body parts and life cycles as well as several reproducible worksheets. One valuable and often misunderstood bit of information, “All bugs are insects, but not all insects are bugs,” is regrettably not expanded upon. The “Multiplying Numbers” page is a helpful addition, providing kids with three different approaches for solving the examples found in the text–count the items, add each group, or multiply. It is worth noting that it is not always easy to count the items; one equation requires counting the wingspans of the luna moths, although there is no ruler on the page to show the number of inches (and if a ruler is employed to solve the equation, readers discover that the wingspans are not “three inches” anyway). In spite of its flaws, creative teachers could find a use for this title."–Heather Acerro, Rochester Public Library, MN

Kirkus-July 2011
With a rhythm and rhyme that never falter, Slade offers readers insect-themed word problems: “Four hungry honey bees / dance a buggy beat— / tappin’ with six furry legs. / How many dancing feet? / 4 x 6 = ?” The 11 multiplication facts, seemingly randomly chosen, each include one of the numbers from one to 11. Hunter, with specialties in entomological and botanical illustration, truly makes the text come alive. Her insects are realistically detailed and seem ready to crawl right out of the pages. Backmatter includes extensive information and questions to help readers learn more about insects. A final page provides a multiplication table as well as a breakdown of each problem from the text.
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Publisher's Weekly-August 2011
In rhyming verse Slade describes the physical features and behaviors of insects while introducing a multiplication question: "Four lovely luna moths/ rest upon a pine./ Each one spans three inches./ How long is the luna line? 4x3=?" Readers won't find hints or answers on the spreads; for that they can turn to the extensive back matter, which includes a multiplication table and information about the insects. Hunter demonstrates care in her naturalistic illustrations of such species as dragonflies, honeybees, pirate bugs, spittlebugs, and butterflies. Ages 4–9. (Aug.)
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Books 4 Learning-March 2012
Author Suzanne Slade has fashioned a wonderful combination of math and science, fostering an appreciation for the little things of nature.   She use rich adjectives and verbs to describe the physical features and daily activities of insects.  Her high spirited rhymes, which effectively use rhyme and alliteration, are engaging and enjoyable.  Erin E. Hunter (illustrator) has beautifully captured the insects in their habitats.  Her brilliant illustrations draw young readers in to the world of insects. 
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Book Loons-February 2012
I like the idea of making math a little more relevant by showing how it can be used in other disciplines. By bringing the world of insects into the equation here, the author will hold the child's attention longer than a regular math book would! How clever is that?
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The Californian-February 2012
Math doesn't have to be a dry subject, as Slade and Hunter demonstrate in this creative and challenging paperback.
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San Francisco Book Review-November 2011
A child who understands addition must make a small leap to understand the concept of multiplication. Through Multiply on the  Fly, author Suzanne Slade and illustrator Erin E. Hunter make that small leap a great deal of fun.

Here, Slade and Hunter use the world of insects to present eleven multiplication problems. For example, children are invited to count the wings on five grasshoppers to discover what five multiplied by two equals. All of this told in clever rhyme with beautiful illustrations of insects and their environments, which make solving the multiplication problems a delightful hunt. Finally, the last six pages of the text contain activities to extend the learning opportunities, including information on insect body parts, a match-the-insect activity, information on the insect life cycle, a compare-and-contrast activity, more multiplication practice and an insect multiplication table.

Multiply on the Fly is a wonderful book for either the parent or teacher who wants to introduce the concept of multiplication in a fun, easy way. And if the child happens to have an interest in insects, all the better!
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Book Loons-September 2011
Rather than apples or oranges, trucks or cars, this clever picture book uses illustrations of insects in their natural habitat to teach multiplication.
Readers will multiply more than just the insects. One example is multiplying the eyes on a fly by the number of flies in the illustration. Multiply on the Fly also offers seek and find pages. Readers must find the insects in their habitat before they can be multiplied.
Hunter's illustrations are beautiful and realistic. This is a fresh, creative way to teach multiplication while learning about insects as well.
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Home School Book Review-October 2011
Cute and well-done.
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Yankee Texan Mama-November 2011
My little one loved the pictures in this book and it was so much fun for her to be able to count the different butterflies and insects while we read.  At the age of three, multiplication is not quite for her, but she had a lot of fun counting.
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Just Another New Blog-September 2011
Multiply on the Fly is a refreshing and fun first look at multiplication. Beautiful illustrations of dragonflies, ladybugs, and other insects perfectly complement the rhyming story. My kids were enchanted by the book, loudly counting bugs, wings and legs on every page. 
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Just Our Thoughts-September 2011
I have a little girl, my Cora, who loves bugs.  She is just starting to learn about about multiplication.  This book is perfect for her.  And I know that once she gets it, she just might be able to teach Kristyn and Marrissa all about it.  I love the bright colors and the rhyming word problems.  What a great teaching tool.  I have yet to check out the teaching material on the website, but if what I’ve seen from Sylvan Dell Publishing in the past is any indication, there are good things in store for my little students!
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Macaroni Kid-September 2011
Looking for a fun way to teach your child multiplication skills? Our friends at Sylvan Dell Publishing sent us a fun book called Multiply on the Fly by Suzanne Slade and illustrated by Erin E. Hunter. Children will love learning about the world's insects in this rhythmic book! It also has fun facts and the  "For Creative Minds" at the back of the book has some awesome facts about thee insect life cycle. It also has multiplication guides that will be helpful for children learning multiplication. My son enjoyed multiplying the different insects in this fun book!
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Papertrails Family Blog, Myles (Age 7)-September 2011
I like this book, because it talks about multiplication and multiplication is one of my favourite things to do. I learned how to do times tables when I was camping this summer, and I'm very excited about it. I'm also very excited to start school again next week, because it's about learning and I like to learn new things. I like animals, and there were lots of insects in this book. I like insects very much. The best part of this book was the multiplying.

This is an information book. Here are three interesting facts I learned:
1. An ant has five eyes.
2. When grasshoppers want to find a mate, they hum.
3. Luna moths like pine trees.

I think this book is a very good book, because it can help kids learn about multiplication and nature at the same time!
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Mom of Three Dolls-September 2011
The book did have a rhythm, which I looked up to be called a quatrain. The poem in the book was written in four, rhymed lines following a set pattern of AABB, which made it even musical to read. As always the illustration was colorful and beautiful.
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Heck of a Bunch-August 2011
If your child has difficulty with multiplication, this book may be a helpful guide. It has a multiplication table and gives helpful instructions on how to answer the multiplication questions that were asked in the book. Multiply on the Fly is in two parts, combining wisdom about insects with multiplication.
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Feathered Quill Book Reviews-August 2011
With beautiful illustrations, a rhyming story, as well as an almost “singable” plot, this book allows children to not only learn math, but also makes them WANT to learn math.
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Learning Table-August 2011
This book would be a fantastic addition to the elementary or homeschool classroom, and it would be a nice inclusion in an insect unit study. 
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Reading to Know-August 2011
My son seems to have the ability to think in numbers. Even though he's only 4 1/2 he picked up on the concept of this book very quickly and with some careful thinking was able to answer some of the multiplication problems on his own. I think this is definitely a book we can still grow into. It's a fun way to learn. Mommy and Daddy liked this one very much.
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