Stuart J. Murphy facts for kids
Stuart J. Murphy (born 1942) is a special kind of teacher who uses pictures to help kids learn. He writes children's books and is known as a visual learning specialist. Stuart Murphy grew up in Rockville, Connecticut, and later studied art and design at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD).
Before becoming a famous author, Stuart Murphy worked as an Art Director at a publishing company called Ginn and Company. In 1980, he helped start his own design company, Ligature. This company created textbooks for subjects like Social Studies, Reading, Science, and Math.
Contents
The MathStart Series
Stuart Murphy is most famous for his MathStart series of books. The first three books came out in 1995, published by HarperCollins Children’s Books. This series now has 63 books!
What MathStart Teaches
MathStart books make learning math fun. They teach important math skills like finding patterns, counting by skips, and solving puzzles where you have to find a missing number. They do this by telling interesting stories and using lots of pictures to help you understand.
The series is split into three levels for different ages:
- Level 1: For kids from Pre-Kindergarten up to Grade 4.
- Level 2: For kids from Pre-Kindergarten up to Grade 4.
- Level 3: For kids from Pre-Kindergarten up to Grade 4.
The 21 books in Level 1 make up one of the biggest math series for young children.
Awards and Recognition
The MathStart books have won many awards. They were named a Top Ten Nonfiction Series for Young Children by Booklist magazine, which is part of the American Library Association. They also received awards from The Bank Street College of Education and The Oppenheim Toy Portfolio.
One of Murphy's books, Less Than Zero, which teaches about negative numbers, was called a "Best Book of the Year" by AAAS Science Books & Films magazine. The MathStart stories have been translated into many languages, including Spanish, Korean, Arabic, and Chinese. By 2013, over 10 million MathStart books had been sold!
The Main Street Kids’ Club Musical
Did you know some of the MathStart books became a musical? It's called The Main Street Kids’ Club. This musical was developed at Northwestern University.
Scott Ferguson, a playwright and director, worked with composer Michael Mahler to create the music. The musical is now licensed by Music Theatre International (MTI), which means schools and local theaters can perform it.
Stuart J. Murphy’s I See I Learn Series
Stuart Murphy also created another series called Stuart J. Murphy’s I See I Learn. These books help children in Pre-Kindergarten and Grade 1 learn important life skills.
What I See I Learn Teaches
This series focuses on:
- Social skills (how to get along with others).
- Emotional skills (understanding feelings).
- Health and Safety skills.
- Cognitive skills (thinking and problem-solving).
The stories feature students in Miss Cathy’s class at Ready Set Pre-K in See-and-Learn City. Just like his math books, these stories use visual learning strategies. Each book also has a special section for parents and teachers called “A Closer Look” to help with learning. A team of early childhood experts checked each book to make sure it was helpful and correct.
This series is also available as an educational program for schools through Pearson Education. It's called I See I Learn at School and includes teacher guides, videos, and games.
Speaking and Contributions
Stuart Murphy has spoken at many educational conferences, sharing his ideas about visual learning. He also helped advise the Arts in Education Program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. For 19 years, he was part of the Board of Trustees at the Rhode Island School of Design, where he studied. He is now an Honorary Trustee there.
Family Life
Stuart Murphy lives with his wife, Nancy, in Boston, Massachusetts, and also in Prota, Italy. They have two children and three grandchildren.
It's a fun fact that two of his grandchildren have MathStart books named after them: Jack the Builder and Mighty Maddie. His youngest grandchild, Camille, even inspired a character in the I See I Learn books!
Related Reading
- How to Read a Book Using Visual Learning Strategies by Stuart J. Murphy (a helpful handout)
- Math Boring? Not at All! The New York Times Editorial, MathStart and the Importance of Early Childhood Education by Stuart J. Murphy (from his vizlearning blog)
- Preparing Preschoolers for the Common Core by Stuart J. Murphy (from BookLinks magazine)
