Math+Teacher+47

=47 is a Prime Number Between 1 and 100 (Go Sagehens!)=

Section 1: Introduction
I am Betsy Smith, the 7th grade math teacher at Christ Church Episcopal Middle School (CCES) in Greenville, SC. We are the largest indepedent college-prep school in the area, with over 1000 students in K-12. We have about 90 students in the 7th grade. Check out our web site for a cute picture of some 7th graders at our annual square dance: [].

I taught 8th grade math in the local public school system for 10 years before coming to CCES 5 years ago. I have really enjoyed working with a population of motivated young people (and their parents!) who know they will be going to college. They are fun and creative and really love to learn!

Also, I went to Pomona College, the home of the mighty Sagehens (a small desert bird that doesn't fly). Pomona is a very nerdy school outside Los Angeles, where the number 47 has been adopted as a signal between alumni in the greater world. It is a prime number between 1 and 100 with many wonderful properities. Watch for it in television and movies--it usually indicates a Pomona grad has been working on the show. I noticed the recent [|Tom Cruise Mission Impossible movie]had a scene where they had to get on car 47 on a train--coincidence?

Section 2: Favorite Things
I like all the books written by Connie Willis, especially [|Doomday Book], Yes, this book is about the plague, but it is really well written and has a great time-travel plot. Her other books are more light hearted. I recommend all of them except //Remake//, which is completely dreadful!

Also, I like doing the //New York Times// crossword puzzle every day, especially Friday's very difficult puzzle. I notice that if you keep going back to the really hard puzzle you can usually figure out things you couldn't do the first time. This works in math, too!

Finally, I am hooked on [|Downton Abbey]. We have all the videos and I waited until school was out to watch them--what a plot! I love the subplot involving the Turkish diplomat--you wouldn't have found that in an adaptable of contemporary material. Using an original story gives them so much more to work with!

Section 3: Burning Question
Do kids really need to understand why the math works, or it is enough just to be able to do it?

Section 4: Web 2.0 Things


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