A Matter of Money with Katherine House

 A Matter of Money

"Which President is on the $10.00 bill?"

The Prairie Racerunners look forward to Tuesday afternoon read aloud time with Katherine House, a local author and Willowwind Parent. On this particular Tuesday afternoon she took our interests in coins, Presidents and reading while tying them altogether with a study of money! Using an article that she had written in Appleseeds, Katherine brought in real bills and coins for the students to study and understand. 

Checking out the rare $2.00 bill.

We paid close attention to each coin: penny, nickel, dime, quarter, half-dollar and "the golden dollar." Then we looked at bills: dollar, five dollar, 10 dollar, 25 dollar, 50 dollar, 100 dollar, and the rare, 2 dollar bill. As a special treat, Ms. Katherine brought each student an enlarged (an imitation) $1000 dollar bill. It was interesting to discover that Alexander Hamilton was the only man represented on bills that was not actually President. Instead, he was the first Secretary of the United States Treasury. We also enjoyed the landmarks noted on the back of coins and bills: The Lincoln Memorial, Monticello, The Jefferson Memorial, and The United States Seal.

"Dude! Look at this coin."

 After she finished reading The President's Stuck in the Bathtub: Poems about Presidents by Susan Katz, we moved to the "Golden Dollar" with the face of Sacagawea. She was the only woman on the Lewis and Clark Expedition and was chosen for her expertise in Shoshone language. We enjoyed seeing her coin as well as other dollar coins with past Presidential imprints on them. Katherine visited with students about the youngest President, photography and Presidents as well as special landmarks. 

Following her discussion, and some great Spring Break photos, we were able to add landmarks such as the White House and Jefferson Memorial to the Word Wall. Students located Washington D.C. on the map and compared its location to another spring break hot spot, Seattle, Washington. We discussed that the White House is located in Washington D.C. which is where President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, their two daughters and dog, Beau, all live. Furthermore, the Oval Office is also in the White House. 


Thank-you to Katherine for taking the time to connect history with our everyday lives. We appreciate her time and extra efforts. 


http://prairieracerunners.willowwindclasses.org/