Employing a learning style that has already proven its value in the classroom and at home, Workman Publishing is rolling out a new workbook series that uses stickers to teach kids math and phonics. Learn by Sticker, distributed under the Workman Kids brand, builds upon the core concepts introduced in the company’s Paint by Sticker books and will be available in July—just in time to combat the summer slide.
Stuck on Learning
The new series was inspired by Workman’s continued mission to provide children with engaging opportunities for practicing fundamental math and phonics concepts. “We wanted to infuse fun and creativity into traditional find-the-answer workbook activities,” said Karen Edwards, editorial director of Workman Kids. While Paint by Sticker replaces the conventional coloring component with stickers, Learn by Sticker substitutes numbers with stickers for grade-level exercises. All content is curriculum-based, focusing on core math and phonics concepts, and is educator-reviewed to affirm what Edwards terms as “pedagogical soundness.”
Like Paint by Sticker, Learn by Sticker’s emphasis on” autonomous learning promotes independent work which, in turn, is designed to increase problem-solving skills. “The stickering process acts as a self-directed answer check, while having children employ logical and spatial reasoning to create the sticker image,” Edwards explained. “The completed image—a piece of fun art that the child can display—is a major boost to their self-confidence.” The back of each page contains supplemental activities, such as word scrambles, riddles, and secret codes, which extend workbook-based learning.
Learn by Stickers is also adaptable for a wide range of environments. The series can be used in the classroom for concept reinforcement, lesson warmups, or as a homework assignment, as well as at home or on the go. Edwards sees the line as an antidote to students suffering from workbook fatigue or for those who need additional practice with math facts and phonics concepts.
Reducing Summer Slide
The first two titles, Learn by Sticker: Addition and Subtraction and Learn by Sticker: Beginning Phonics (July 18), feature similar layouts with 10 full-color pages of activities in different themes. The math workbook contains images of baby animals that kids create by answering addition and subtraction problems, finding the appropriate sticker that matches their answer and adding it to the sticker map. Friendly monsters set the scene in the phonics book, where kids fill in the missing letter to complete a word, locate the corresponding sticker and place it on the sticker map.
By combining workbook-based learning with creative activities, Learn by Sticker is designed to maintain kids’ skill building even when they are out of the classroom. “We can reduce summer slide by making review and practice attractive, so that children want to put in the work,” Edwards said. “The learning-through-fun approach should make Learn by Sticker a staple in children’s summer backpacks and beach bags.”
Two additional titles—centering on math and phonics for second grade—are planned for summer 2024.
