The Death of an Inspirational Leader

On December 5, a world leader passed away.  Nelson Mandela, the "founding father" of South Africa died at age 95.  Read this article to find out more about Mandela.  After you have read the article, click here and watch the video (red icon "Watch a Video"). 

Leave a comment with your answers to these two questions:

• What do you think was most inspirational about Nelson Mandela?
• Who is a leader that you think is inspirational?  What is so inspiring about them?  (This person could be living or dead.)

Who Was Langston Hughes?

Hey Scholars,

Check out this slideshow to learn about the life of Langston Hughes.  You will need to pause pretty frequently so that you don't miss anything. 

Listen to this dramatic reading of "Mother to Son," by Langston Hughes.  Notice the emotion with which the author reads - intense!  Leave a comment:

• describing what stands out to you about the life of Langston Hughes and why you think that matters
• describing something you noticed about the poem that you hadn't noticed when you read it yourself
• describing how you felt when you heard the poem being read and why you think you felt that way
• explaining why the reader might have been so dramatic when she read "Mother to Son"

Optional: If you want more information about Langston Hughes, check out this biography by Scholastic.

Fraction Math

Dirt Bike Game - Can you solve these fraction inequalities before it's too late?

Balloon Pop - Three levels of fraction comparison fun!

Memory Match Up - Find the equivalent fraction pairs. 

Pizza Match - Match the fractions by selecting the right size of pizza slices. 

Exponents Game

Check out this Pirate Game to practice exponents.  Be sure to take your time to work out the problem - don't just guess! 

If you think you know your squares and cubes, check out Alien Powers.  You won't have time to work out your answers on paper or a calculator, so be sure to practice your facts first.

Leave a comment below to tell me which game you practiced. 

Welcome!

Welcome to our class blog!

Here are some guidelines for posting on our blog:

• When you post, use only your FIRST NAME. 
• ALWAYS check your grammar, spelling, and punctuation first. 
• It will be helpful for you to type in Word first, then copy and paste into the comment box. 
• Never use foul language, insult the opinions of others, or otherwise be unkind. 

RTI Flooring Costs

Laminate
Cheap Laminate	$0.50 per sq. foot
Good Laminate	$0.75 per sq. foot
Excellent Laminate	$1.00 per sq. foot
Hardwood
Engineered Hardwood	$1.25 per sq. foot
Solid Hardwood	$1.50 per sq. foot
Solid fine-finished Hardwood	$2.00 per sq. foot
Tile
Slate Tiles	$1.25 per sq. foot
Travertine Tiles	$1.75 per sq. foot
Marble Tiles	$2.25 per sq. foot
Bamboo
Cheap Bamboo	$1.25 per sq. foot
Good Bamboo	$1.75 per sq. foot
Excellent Bamboo	$2.25 per sq. foot
Carpet
Cheap/ugly	$0.50 per sq. foot
Cheap/good looking	$0.75 per sq. foot
Nice/ugly	$0.75 per sq. foot
Good	$1.00 per sq. foot
Excellent	$1.50 per sq. foot

Learn more about different types of flooring here. 

RTI Wall Cover Costs

Paint (you choose color)
Cheap paint	.26 per sq. foot
Good paint	.37 per sq. foot
Excellent paint	.59 per sq. foot
Wallpaper
Pretty wallpaper	.80 per sq. foot
Polka dots	.62 per sq. foot
Premier wallpaper	1.33 per sq. foot
Zebra wallpaper	1.29 per sq. foot
Rock/Stone wallpaper	.81 per sq. foot
Wood Paneling
Light color paneling	1.22 per sq. foot
Dark color paneling	2.92 per sq. foot
White paneling	2.50 per sq. foot
Tile
Marazzi tiles (sand color)	.78 per sq. foot
Marazzi tiles (gray color)	1.87 per sq. foot
Fancy tiles	5.85 per sq. foot
Marble tiles	7.86 per sq. foot

Painted room

Wall Paper

Wood Panels

Put the Brakes on the Summer Slide

You may not think much about reading over the summer.  Check out this article to find out why it really does matter. 

Sticky Situation

Christine and Andrea have been best friends for years.  One day, a group of popular girls ask Christine to sit with them at lunch - but they don't invite Andrea.  Christine always sits with Andrea in the cafeteria, but she doesn't want to miss her chance to hang out with the popular girls. 

What should Christine do?

Bibliography Information

Here is the information you will want to keep track of for your bibliography:

Citing a Website

URL (web address)

Title of Website               

Title of Article/Page

Author or publisher of the website

Date website was created or updated

Citing a Book

Title

Author or Editor

Publisher

Year Published 

Pages used

Online Resources

Use these websites to help with research for your Travel Agency project.  You should have a little yellow sheet with login information for those sites that require a username and password. 

SIRS Discoverer

CultureGrams

eLibrary

ProQuest Online

KSD Research Page

KCLS Homework Help (you may need to use your King County Library card)

Gun Laws

After watching today's CNN Student News and reading this article from Nick News, answer the following questions:
 - Should we make national changes to gun laws?  If so, what changes do you support?  If not, why do you think things should stay the same?
 - What do you think should be the most important gun law?