Numbers Game

Before my kids can leave every period, I have a routine they must follow...1. Sit 2. Be Quiet 3. Put your book in the top corner of your desk. I usually give them a heads up to the ringing of the bell. Here's what happened yesterday: Mr. H: Ok, 30 seconds until the bell. 7th Grade Student: 10, 9, 8, wait a minute. Mr. H: Really?

What's in a race?

Well, as the school year comes to a close, I have a few blog postings to catch you up on... While discussing the Supreme Court, I brought up a few "firsts" of the court. Sandra Day O'Connor - the first female justice. Thurgood Marshall - the first black justice and... Mr. H: Here's Sonia Sotomayor, the first Hispanic Supreme Court Justice. 7th Grade Student: Is she black?

Bathroom Renovations

Every Thursday, my class reads the newspaper and discusses local and national issues. One issue last Thursday was arson. A student at a local high school basically set the bathroom on fire. The headline on the paper stated, "Repair estimates at $50k". The seventh grade mind took in that information and spit out this nugget of knowledge:

7th Grade Student: Mr. H, does that mean 50 killion dollars?"

Mr. H: Ugghhh

The Future is Upon Us

While watching a news service in class, a story of a new type of car being developed by students at MIT came on. This new car was about a third of the size of a regular car and was for use in large cities. The kids really thought this was cool. I believe their enthusiasm can be summed up by this statement:

7th Grade Student: Mr. H, I think the future is coming.

Mr. H: We'll see...

Fav 5

Today, in class, we were discussing the passage of immigrants to Ellis Island. I wanted to make sure my students understood that immigrants could only bring with them whatever they could carry...nothing more. To demonstrate, I asked them to choose their "fav 5"...any 5 items that they would bring with them if they were making the trek. The only stipulation being that they had to be able to carry the items. I got the very logical answers: food, clothing, water.
But I also got these:

7th Grade Student: Rocks

Another 7th Grade Student: Some pantyhose for church on Sunday.

One student had this to ask: Mr. H, Do they have McDonald's on the ships?

Mr. H: No.

Same student: Not even the McCafe?