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Recently, I read an interesting article titled, "Girls as Good at Math as Boys, Finds Study", picked up by the Associated Press from Science Magazine, just in time for back-to-school.

"In the largest study of its kind, girls measured up to boys in every grade, from second through 11th. The research was released Thursday in the journal Science."

The article also cites that, "Parents and teachers persist in thinking boys are simply better at math, said Janet Hyde, the University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher who led the study. And girls who grow up believing it wind up avoiding harder math classes.

"It keeps girls and women out of a lot of careers, particularly high-prestige, lucrative careers in science and technology," Hyde said.

I recommend reading the entire article, if you get the chance.

(I can't help but mention that neither girls nor boys are doing "well" in this country, relative to the world. See for example: www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0923110.html)

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So, let's talk about how to make back-to-school better for everyone - especially the students!

Undoubtedly, everyone's list is different, but here are some pretty universal issues that students grapple with every year - things probably found on the "to do" list of students and their parents, if such a list exists:

1. Get more confident and successful at taking tests

2. Learn to better handle and diffuse stress

3. Procrastinate less and get homework done on time (okay, this might only be on the parents' list for their kids!)

So, now that we have this list, what shall we do about it? I've talked to countless teachers and students about these issues, because it's well known that mastering the actual course material is only half the game. So, in addition to the math lessons covered in Kiss My Math, I filled the book with tips to make these 3 wishes come true. I'll show you some now!

1. Get more confident and successful at taking tests

With the increased number of standardized tests students are expected to take, this grows more and more important each year!

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Last year, after releasing Math Doesn't Suck, for back-to-school '07, we got such a positive response that we decided to follow up with the next step up in the math curriculum with Kiss My Math. And just in time for back-to-school ‘08.

When I wrote my first book, Math Doesn't Suck, I had about a year to turn in the first draft, and several months afterwards for rewrites. This time, we wanted to turn the whole thing around in a year! A year had always seemed like a long time, until I became an author.

It was more labor-intensive to write it more quickly, so I completely stopped acting for about 7 months in order to basically chain myself to my computer, and turn out the best book possible! An odd thing about Kiss My Math? For some reason, I wrote this one almost entirely during nighttime hours. I'd work late, until around 5am or so, go to sleep around 6am, and then sleep all day, wake up at 2pm and start again. I think I did that because there were fewer distractions, and I could get more done. See, I was determined to make Kiss My Math not only on par with Math Doesn't Suck, but even better. Thankfully I was cheered on by countless emails from girls, telling me how much Math Doesn't Suck had helped them, and how much they were hoping for a sequel. They made the late nights a lot easier!

So, what are the main differences between Math Doesn't Suck and Kiss My Math?

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When Penguin asked me to write a blog on "Back to School" my first thought was, Is summer over already? And I briefly flashed back to that feeling from my childhood of dread, as the freedom of summer evaporated and September loomed in front of me. I remember seeing television ads with excited kids wearing brightly colored clothes, jumping around with new backpacks amidst loud "Back to School" graphics, and I'd think, Why the heck are all those kids so excited about going back to school? I mean really, didn't they know this meant that we all had to wake up early and endure things like math tests?

So, although I'm writing in a "Back to School" themed blog this week, I promise not to pretend that going back to school is all hunky-dory and that you're all just ecstatic in your hot pink outfits and orange book bags. In fact, to all you middle school and high school kids who are about to go back to school, I will say this: I feel your pain.

And I hereby pledge to make it much, much less painful.

It would be hard to dispute that one of the least popular subjects, and therefore one of the most popular sources of September dread, is mathematics. If you're going into 6^th - 8^th grade, you're probably going to be learning some form of pre-algebra. And guess what? I've written two books, Math Doesn't Suck (paperback released on July 1, 2008), and Kiss My Math (hardcover released Aug. 5^th, 2008) that will help you not only get through pre-algebra, but actually enjoy the subject.