Room 15 kids recently recorded their classroom reader’s theater presentation of The Cardiff Giant. It tells the true story about how in 1868 the citizens of Cardiff, New York, discovered a ten foot tall petrified man buried on a local farm. Our play stars Dakota C. as Stub Newell, the farmer, and Emily H. as Lydia Newell, his wife. It also stars Zach G. as George Hull, the story’s villain, Jordan C. as Billy Houghton, and Bryant B. as Colonial George Wood. Every student in class had a part. You can listen to a podcast of the play by clicking on the picture of the giant at left.

Speaking of giants, congratulations to Room 15 kids TaylorRose T., Paige B., Grace M., Zach G., Chloe S., and Jonah S. for being named SOU Academy Scholars. They’re the academic giants in our classroom. The award means they’re eligible to attend Southern Oregon University’s prestigious Academy program this June. CPE had six representatives attend last year.

The Science Fair is May 17th. Projects packets are available in the classroom. The projects are voluntary, but they must be completed at home. Parents are welcome to and encouraged to coach and assist their children, but the project should ultimately be the work of the student.

In class this week we’re starting our last Book Club of the year on Wednesday, taking our vocabulary exam on Thursday, and starting a giant of a math unit on long division. We’ll be teaching two methods: the traditional algorithm and the Marilyn Burns model, which works better for kids who don’t have a firm grasp of their multiplication facts. Here’s the homework for this week: Monday, May 6th; Tuesday, May 7th; Wednesday, May 8th; Thursday, May 9th. This week we’ll also be continuing our preparation for the coast trip with studies about the South Slough, and we’ll be starting our individual research projects about tide pool creatures.