Noted author to speak at CSC Wednesday night

Schwartz also will be speaking to students from the Chadron elementary schools and several of the Dawes and Sheridan County rural schools at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in Memorial Hall at CSC before he is one of the headline speakers at the Nebraska State Reading Association meeting in Kearney this weekend.

Schwartz is the author of “How Much is a Million?” and about 30 other books, including “If You Made a Million” and “If You Hopped Like a Frog” and the “Look Once, Look Again” science series. Schwartz said he will be speaking on the excitement of big numbers and connections between numbers, science and stories.

“Children love big numbers in the same way they love big animals like dinosaurs and whales,” Schwartz says. “And for that reason, big numbers are the perfect way to get kids excited about math.”

As he speaks, Schwartz also emphasizes the importance of numbers in every aspect of everyday lives, including literature. “Numbers and stories are related to each other in more ways than most people realize,” the author declares. “Once children see the connection, they often start writing wonderful numerical stories of their own.”

Inspired by “How Much is a Million?” students in hundreds of schools have engaged “million projects,” which often include the collection of a million of something. Students at some schools and patrons at some libraries have attempted to read a million pages after hearing Schwartz speak.

His latest book, “Millions to Measure,” is said to do for measurement what “How Much Is a Million?” did for big numbers.

A New York native and a graduate of Cornell University, Schwarz now lives in Oakland, Calif.