Math can be a difficult subject for many children—not because they lack ability, but because numbers often feel abstract, disconnected from the real world.
That’s where storytelling comes in.
🧠 The Brain Loves Meaning
Research in educational psychology shows that children learn best when they can connect new concepts to meaningful experiences. Numbers on their own don’t carry emotional weight—but stories do.
When numbers become part of a narrative, they gain context, emotion, and memory hooks. Think of how kids remember fairy tales, character voices, or song lyrics after hearing them once. That’s because stories engage multiple areas of the brain: language, emotion, visualization—even movement.
When we apply that same approach to math, we’re giving children more than facts—we’re giving them memory pathways.
🦌 From Numbers to Characters
In the FUNS Method, each number is represented by a character with a story:
- 🦌 Sixby the Deer leaps over logs in sixes
- 🕷️ Eighton the Spider weaves octagonal webs
- 🦥 Sevenster the Sloth climbs slowly with seven-shaped claws
These playful scenes allow children to see multiplication in action. They’re not just repeating “6 × 7 = 42”—they’re picturing Sixby tangled in 42 vines, with Sevenster coming to help.
This kind of visual storytelling builds deep memory, especially for creative and neurodiverse learners.
💡 Why It Works
Story-based learning improves math understanding because it:
- 🎯 Reduces anxiety by making math feel safe and familiar
- 🧠 Activates visual memory, making facts easier to recall
- ❤️ Builds emotional connections, which aid long-term retention
- 🎵 Encourages rhythm and pattern, especially through rhymes
- 🌿 Invites exploration, not just repetition
🎥 See It In Action
Want to see how stories make math stick?
Visit our YouTube Channel to meet the Number Heroes and watch math come to life through storytelling.
📖 Learn More
Curious about the method behind the magic?
Explore our Teaching Philosophy to see how the FUNS method blends psychology, storytelling, and joy into a new way of teaching times tables.
Because when learning feels like a story—it stays for life.