Charlotte Morgan and the Great Big Math Problem--Chapter 13--Partners--And It's my 2,000 post here on Steemit! Whoo-Hoo!

  Whoo-Hoo!  2,000 posts (blog posts and comments) here on Steemit.  It's taken me way too long to get here, as I've been on here since June 2016.  But I'm finally at 2,000.

This is my next book.  

It is currently being copy edited, (so there will be the occasional typo in this version) and I am having a few illustrations done.

I am including the tag #steemiteducation because I wrote this thinking like a teacher.  The characters use math and describe their math thinking as they work through problems.  I am a former 1st, 3rd, and 5th grade teacher, so I used my experience and background from those years as I wrote this.

Update: The book is now available for preorder on Amazon.  

Click here to get it on Kindle.Click here to preorder the books

Chapter 13: Partners

Summary:  Charlotte is partnered with Gavin who bullies her and the other Number Investigators.

At 7:07 am the next morning, I rolled out of bed.  I took down the number eleven, and put up the the number ten.  There were now ten days until the Math Bee.  That’s 240 hours.  I got dressed and went downstairs to get breakfast.  On school days, I have cereal and orange juice.  That takes less time to make than pancakes.

I walked down the stairs to the kitchen.  My dad was already drinking his coffee.  “Good morning, Tambourine.  What’s 12 times 3?” 

“Dad!” I whined.

“Answer the question,” he took a sip from his mug.

I paused and looked at the problem in my head. 1 times 3 is 3 and that goes in the tens place, and 2 times 3 is 6 and that goes in the ones place.  I saw it in my head, 36.  “36.  The answer is 36.”

“Very good!  Your cereal is on the table, just pour your milk.”

I ate my cereal.  I got my backpack and went to the school bus.

I was quiet on the bus ride to school.  My brain was running overtime trying to figure out another way to prove that Gavin had stolen our stuff.

As I got off the bus and went to Mrs. King’s room, classroom number 17, I unpacked and started on my morning work, two math problems and a science review.  Name the largest planet in the solar System.  I wrote the answer, Jupiter, but my brain was still stuck on our missing stuff and Gavin.

What is 6x7, and 100-47—42 and 53.  I pictured both questions in my  head. And with that my morning work was finished.

Unlike the day before, I said zero words during Morning Meeting.

Mrs. King dismissed us back to our seats to begin math.

“So, class remember that next Friday is the school Math Bee.  We need to have our class representatives chosen by Wednesday.  So next Wednesday, we will spend math time doing our own Math Bee, and everybody will be participating.”

Twenty-four students groaned.

“It will be a quiz grade, and you will be partnered up.”

A second set of groans from twenty-four students.

“Wait? Do we get to choose our partners?” asked Rachel.  She sits at my table.

“No.  I will do it,” replied Mrs. King.

A third set of groans from twenty-four students.

I raised my hand.  

“Yes, Charlotte?” Mrs. King asked.

“When do we find out who our partner is?” I asked.

“Funny you should ask that.”  Mrs. King stepped over to her table that was next to the smartboard.  She pulled a piece of paper off her desk and waved it above her head.  “I have everyone’s partner here.”

Suddenly the air in the room was tense.  I leaned forward.

“Kevin and Jason,” Mrs. King began.  

“Cool,” both Kevin and Jason smiled at each other across the room.

“Marcus and Jennifer,” said Mrs. King.  I was disappointed that Marcus wouldn’t be my partner.

“Charlotte and Gavin,” Mrs. King said next.  My stomach sank like the first hill on the Supersonic Coaster.  I looked at Gavin.  His eyes were close,  and he shook his head.  

Somebody patted me on the back.  I didn’t see who it was.  My eyes weren’t working.  I was seeing spots.

My cheeks burned and my stomach was in knots.  I was positive I was going to pass out and hit my head on my desk and the entire class would laugh, and then Mrs. King would have to rush me to the clinic to call my parents.  

Luckily, I kept that together.

Later as we lined up for lunch, I asked Mr.s King if I could talk with her.

“What is this about?” she asked.

I leaned in and whispered “The Math Bee.”

“What about the Math Bee?” she looked down her nose at me, through her glasses.

I whispered again, “It’s about my partner.”  I really hoped he didn’t hear me.

“We can talk about this at recess, Charlotte,” she patted me on the shoulder and I got in line to go to lunch.

It’s exactly 175 feet to the cafeteria, and I looked at the ground for all 175 feet.

 

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