If You Made a Million

by David M. Schwartz

Other authorsSteven Kellogg (Illustrator)
Paperback, 1989

Status

Check shelf

Call number

332.024

Publication

Scholastic (1989), 36 pages

Description

Describes the various forms which money can take, including coins, paper money, and personal checks, and how it can be used to make purchases, pay off loans, or build interest in the bank.

User reviews

LibraryThing member snapdragongirl
I loved this book as a kid. Starting at one penny and going up to a million dollars, the book explains what you can buy. It also explains how checks work. Even with inflation, it is still relevant today.
LibraryThing member dukefan86
This is a fun book for helping to teaching kids about money. I like the examples given for what to buy with different large amounts of money--they plug into children's fantasies, like buying a ferris wheel or a castle.
LibraryThing member MesserPicks
Love, love, love this author! I enjoy so many of his books. I think this book would lead into so many discussions about money and what you would do if you earned a million dollars.
LibraryThing member ebruno
David Schwartz did a fabulous job explaining how certain dollar values are equivalent in coins. Counting, interest, money, and checks are all cleverly explained. I would definately read this book to a k-3 math class.
LibraryThing member Ms.Penniman
Retelling: People do work to earn money. The money they earn comes in coins or dollars. They can spend the money or put it in a bank that will pay them interest. They can borrow money from the bank and pay the bank interest.

Thoughts and Feelings: If I had a million dollars, I would buy each of my
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students an i-pad so they could use it in the classroom to learn. What a great way to learn personal finance!
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LibraryThing member jesaltman
This is a good book to use for a math lesson on money. It has different math concepts in it. It shows kids how money works and different ways to increase the value.
LibraryThing member mmwrigh3
A child friendly story about money. Shows that people work for money. Money is in the form of coins or dollars. You can spend money or better yet save it so then it can build interest. This would be a great book to use to show kids the benefits of saving. I love how it in perspective of how much a
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million would be in terms of height. Really interesting with funny illustrations.
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LibraryThing member mrcmyoung
Here we have a book about money that no child will ever want to read. Schwartz tries to do too much here. Are we counting to a million dollars here, exploring money equivalency, or learning how to accumulate interest in a savings account? I started with a penny and now I'm writing a $1000 check for
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a hippo and making a down payment on a castle. Make it stop! An unsuccessful mix of real-world money matters and fantasy spending will leave students disoriented.
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LibraryThing member Sandra_Loya
This book tries to put an the abstract concept of a million dollars into a concrete perspective. It starts with showing the concept of money in equivalent money terms such as 2 dimes and 1 nickel is the same as a quarter. It progresses into much more abstract terms such as interest, mortgages and
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paying with a check.

While the illustrations and concepts in the beginning are very elementary, the concepts become too abstract. The skill level of this book is too broad to make sense to be in the same book. I like the concept but think it should be 2 separate books. One on the concept of a million dollars and one covering interest, loans and checking accounts.

The concepts in this book are too broad to be effectively used in a classroom as part of any lesson. It would be nice to have on hand to use a couple of pages to cover certain concepts and for students to flip through during reading time to get what they may get out of it.
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LibraryThing member laf
This is a great book showing just how rich you would be if you made a million dollars. It also explains the bank system. Did you know that if you put one million dollars in the bank, you could live off the interest? It could earn 10 cents a minute, if it has a good interest rate. On the other hand,
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if you borrow money you should pay if off right away before the bank earns interest on what you've borrowed. You can lose a lot of money that way. If you borrowed one million dollars, you could LOSE ten cents a minute.

Steven Kellogg also illustrated this book, and How Much Is a Million? I'd describe this books illustrations the exact same way that I described them in How Much Is A Million? They're drawn the same way, just of different things. They had a good illustration of a fish where you could feed a fish and earn one cent. I also enjoyed the picture of a kid unclogging a fountain with frogs jumping out.

I would sure like to make a million dollars. If I had a million dollars, I would take a taxi to the Andes Mountains. Then I would bank my money there!
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LibraryThing member breksarah
I like how the book incorporates counting money, but I feel it was a bit extensive and sometimes a little confusing in order. I would use this book for fun in a first or second grade class.
LibraryThing member romakerby
I like now the book starts with a value as small as a penny and works its way up through change then to bills. It is a bit whimsical which will catch the attention of children, but I think the way the information is presented, some kids may get lost in the information. I would categorize the book
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for elementary school kids, but talking about interest and such things may not appeal to that age group. But if you move towards an age group that would understand that aspect more, the elementary aspect of the text deters those readers.
Interesting information, but it can be hard to follow.
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LibraryThing member mosbor
Steven Kellog creates a dreamy, magical feel in his illustrations of the author's, David Schwartz, fundamental description of how money works. Read before a math lesson, "If You Made A Million", could set the mood for learning.
LibraryThing member acreel
This book shows all of the things that can be bought with money. It shows children trying to figure out the cost in things and how to actually save money. It also shows all of the different ways to count money. For example, when the child earned a nickel, it showed a nickel and 5 pennies. This way
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children can see how many different ways there are in counting money. Children also learn money's value. This was a very informational book for children.
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LibraryThing member epoche
The beginning of the book breaks down money by its value. Example: one dollar is 100 pennies, 10 dimes, 20 nickels and 4 quarters. Then it goes on to explain how many items you can purchase with the amount of money you have. There are many different combinations to equal one amount of money.
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Example: if you want to get $100 out of the bank, you can get 1 hundred dollar bill, 2 fifty dollar bills, 4 twenties, 10 ten dollar bills,, etc. Also, the book explains if you save your money it will collect interest and be worth more in the future. You can also borrow money, for example if you want to buy a house and don't have enough money. When you borrow money, you will have to pay back more than the house cost, the interest. Before you can do anything with money, you have to make money. I would recommend this book to grades 1-5. Students can read this book for lessons about math but I would also recommend this book to children who don't have a complete understanding of money. Students often know how to spend money but not how to save it. This book covers all the aspects of making money, saving money and spending money.
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LibraryThing member slbenne1
Marvelosissimo, the Mathematical Magician, takes readers on a journey through "the fascinating world of money." He explains the differences between denominations, values, and even how actually money measures up when stacked. There are so many possibilties when it comes to money, and especially
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making a million!
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LibraryThing member rdg301library
This short story is about Marvelosissimo the Mathematical Magician who helps the reader understand how money works. He helps earn money, invest that money, accrue dividends and interest, and then watch the savings grow. The author provides information about taxes, loans, checking and savings
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accounts, and other important financial information. I would also use this book in junction with Schwartz's How Much is A Million.

Informational Nonfiction
Reading Level: 4.1
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LibraryThing member katieloucks
I loved reading this as a kid! nice for perspective of a million
LibraryThing member SalemSmith
I think this book would be good to use in a K-2 classroom. I would use this book primarily for counting money and would use it in an interactive read-aloud with students. I think they would like this book because it really lets them use their imagination.
LibraryThing member NMiller22
Describes the various forms which money can take, including coins, paper money, and personal checks, and how it can be used to make purchases, pay off loans, or build interest in the bank.

Language

Original publication date

1989

ISBN

0590436082 / 9780590436083
Page: 0.4531 seconds