Wednesday

Fractions and Division....lots of practice helps! Next time you have a pizza, try talking about the pieces as fractions of the whole pizza. Eggs might not be as popular as pizza, but the cartons work great for talking about fractions, too.

The kids should finish up their interviews, rough drafts (three or more pages from the interviews), and have a good start on the family tree. Then they'll be in good shape to finish up the project by the end of the month for the due date.

Thursday

Our 'Math Club With Jack' continues on Wednesdays this new year as an after school program for extra help with Math Facts and the ever-challenging effort to learn fractions. Jack Foote is a retired teacher from Port Angeles who taught Science and Chemistry at Port Angeles High School for many years.

Work continues on our Family History Reports this week as the kids learned how to turn interview notes into rough drafts on notebook paper. We decided that each family member interviewed (a minumum of three) deserved at least one hand-written page. They also received folders to keep all the report assignments and materials as that volume grows over the following weeks. Remember, the reports are due at the end of this month.

Bonus Question: 'Which is larger, 5/6 or 4/3?'

Friday

And so begins the holiday break after an eventful week at Franklin School ,which will stay open at least another year. Many thanks to the well-spoken parents and Mrs. Chapman for their on-target remarks at last Monday's school board meeting.

The fourth-graders have just learned how to conduct interviews for their family history report projects. The assignment is made the week before the break to accomodate the opportunity many will have to interview relatives during the holiday time. The report itself is not due until the end of January so the kids aren't asked to do massive homework over the next two weeks by any means. If it works to get three interviews done with notes taken on cards, that's great.

Here's hoping everyone has a safe and happy holiday break!

Thursday

Check out the new art project: Collage: In the Style of Matisse on our classroom bulletin board. Using cut paper, the fourth graders formed dancers over a collage background of wintry colors. Nice contrast!

Here's a bonus problem to do at home: Mother bought a bag of cookies. There were 36 cookies in it. The children found the bag after school, and when Mother interfered there were 21 cookies left. How many cookies were gone? (Try writing a number sentence before solving.)

Next week we'll learn how to conduct interviews for the Family History Report Project.

Thursday

Disco Day at Franklin turned up some great and colorful costumes. Trying to explain the difference between the 'Disco Days' and the 'Hippie Days' and that they were not one and the same, proved a little difficult. The Family History Report project is on the way so stay tuned. The kids will learn how to interview relatives before the Winter Break so they are ready in case the extended family gets together. Of course, interviews can be conducted over the phone, by email, or by letter, too. The reports won't be due until the end of January so this is not an attempt to ruin the break from school by any means. Nursery rhymes are rich with word play and literary images so one of our bonus questions asked the fourth-graders to find the ending to a few that are not so easy to remember. 'What is the line after "To bed, to bed, said sleep head?" See below for the answer and a few other rhymes. This week's bonus question asked for the neame of the famous toy store in New York City. The kids are reading a selection called "Me and Uncle Romie," about a boy who travels to New York from North Carolina to stay with his aunt and uncle. Good story with lots of place names and geography and interesting food references than include grits and pepper jelly.

Nursery Rhymes:

Little Miss Muffet

Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet, eating her curds and whey. Along came a big spider who sat next beside her and frightened Miss Muffet away.



“To Bed to Bed” said Sleepy Head

“To bed to bed” said Sleepy Head. “No tarry awhile” said Slow. “Put on the pot” said Greedy Gut. “We’ll sup before we go!”

Thursday

National Education Week brought Representative Kevin Van de Wege to Room 17 last Monday. He talked to the kids about the state budget and the organization of state government. Joining him were Superintendent Jane Pryne, School Board Director Cindy Kelly, and Principal Amity Butler.

Thursday

"Do you remember being that little?" I asked the fourth-graders last Tuesday when we had the opportunity to work with "kindergarten buddies" down the hall here at Franklin Elementary School. More than of few of this year's fourth-graders were our 'shorties' four years ago when they were in Mrs. Carlson's kindergarten class, and yes, they remembered. One of the many good things about a neighborhood school is the opportunity for cross age activities such as kindergarten buddies as it helps teach responsibility, leadership, and respect for a diverse community.