CSTAT Fall 2025 - Statistical Content in Children's Books

Title: Statistical Content in Children's Books
Instructor: Dr. Lara Lusa
Date: October 24, 2025

Dr. Lara Lusa,  Natural  Sciences and Information Technologies, University of Primorska, Slovenia and Institute for Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia

Statistical literacy—the ability to understand, interpret, and critically evaluate statistical information—is increasingly recognized as an important goal in early education. Storytelling and play-based activities that embed statistical ideas can nurture statistical thinking even in early childhood.

Picture books are widely valued for supporting early learning, especially in mathematics. Yet their potential to develop statistical literacy has been less explored. Identifying suitable books that incorporate statistical ideas, and providing guidance on how to use them effectively, remains a challenge.

This talk examines the presence of statistics in children’s picture books, focusing on elements of the problem-solving process (question formulation, data collection, analysis, and interpretation), representations of data, acknowledgment of variability, and classification. The examples are drawn from two sources: an unsystematic review of thousands of picture books, and a systematic screening of 113 titles in the “Younger Section” of the 2022 and 2023 Notable Children’s Books lists compiled by the Association for Library Service to Children (a division of the American Library Association).

The talk will also consider children’s infographic books—works designed to present information and data in visually engaging ways. Common themes will be surveyed, with attention to how different formats (statistical, comparative, timeline, geographical, hierarchical, process) can support clear and effective communication.