Everyone Enjoyed Family Math

See the slideshow of the event on the sidebar!

You know it has to be a good time when you get responses like “Family math rocks!” from some of the twenty-eight participants in the Exeter-Milligan Elementary school evening Family Math event.

Haven't heard of Family Math before? According to Exeter-Milligan elementary teachers Marla Weber and Anita Mueller it’s “A chance for parents to get involved with their children’s math education.“

The event held in the Exeter cafeteria was open to all families with children in kindergarten through sixth grade. Family Math was developed through the University of California, Berkeley. Weber and Mueller attended a two-day training program in 1991 to learn how to set up a successful family math event.

Since their training the pair have offered ten sessions and hope to continue offering more opportunities for learning in the future.

As the parent/child teams entered they had some Venn diagrams to sign and three different items to estimate. There were also math centers to explore which included Toothpick Farmer, Bug Block, Nimble Calculator, Cut a Card, Ten Card Arrangement, Tanagram Kits and Math Maps.

At the beginning of each session Weber and Mueller demonstrated several of the math activities and then participants were allowed to choose activities. Each activity could be tailored for the age and skill of the child. “This is a springboard for parents to show math is easy to do whenever and wherever you are to make it a positive experience,” said Weber.

More than just teaching math skills Weber felt it is “challenging for parents and children, it involves more strategy than basic math skills so it is fun for everyone. Some of the parents are still asking for answers to some of the tanagram puzzles.”

The parents wrote in their evaluations that they enjoyed having the bonding time with their children and thanked the teachers for volunteering their time to help the kids have some fun with learning.

**********Here is some advice from the Family Math book by Jean Kerr Stenmark, Virginia Thomsen and Ruth Cossey (Regents, University of California, 1986)******

1) Let your child know that you believe he/she can succeed.

2) Be ready to talk to your child about mathematics, and listen to what he/she says. Ask your child to explain the meaning of each part of a problem.

3) Be more concerned with the processes of doing mathematics than getting a correct answer. The answer to a particular problem has little importance, but knowing how to find answers is a lifetime skill.

4) Try not to tell your child how to solve the problem. It’s better to ask questions and help your child find his/her own methods of working it through.

5) Practice estimating with your child whenever possible. Estimation helps them think about a problem that precedes the doing, and it helps kids understand whether their answers make sense.

6) Provide a special place for study. Allow your child to help gear the place to his/her learning style.

7) Encourage group study, especially as your children grow older.

8) Expect that homework will be done, and look at completed homework regularly, but keep your comments positive. Praise your child for asking questions.

9) Try not to drill your child on math content or create hostilities by insisting that math work be done at one specific time or in a specific way.

10) Don’t expect that all homework will be easy for your child or be disappointed that it seems difficult,

11) Let your child see you enjoying mathematics. Include recreational mathematics in your family routine. Try to introduce math ideas (with a light touch!) at the dinner table, while traveling, or while at the grocery store.

Exeter Chamber of Commerce Door Decorating

The Exeter Chamber of Commerce is offering the opportunity for you to get a little holiday decorating done. For $10 the Chamber will decorate the door of your choice with a Christmas ribbon and bow. There is a choice of red or gold ribbon. The proceeds go to the Exeter Foundation. Forms are available at the Exeter Library and City office, First National Bank in Exeter, Greg's and at the Exeter Post Office. Please place your order by November 19th.

Terry Salyer honored to fly with the Veterans as an Escort

Terry Salyer, of Exeter, had several strong motives for volunteering as an escort for the fourth Heartland Honor Flight and this was his most important one, honoring the World War II veterans.

He emphasized that “The story is not about me. It is about the World War II veterans. I was just there to help them along.” Both Terry and his wife Elaine are veterans of the Vietnam War. The served at the same hospital in Qui Nhon where Terry was a medic and Elaine was an R.N. She served a one year tour and Terry was there from 1966 to 1969.

When a spot to ride with the veterans on the October 22^nd flight to Washington, D.C. came up he jumped at the chance, “I know my Dad will never get to see it so I wanted to go for him and see it for him. I sent my Dad a letter about my trip and all of the pictures and he got very emotional about it. That made the whole experience worth it for me. It meant so much to him," Salyer reported.

SEE THE SLIDESHOW OF TERRY'S PICTURES ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE PAGE

If you would like an opportunity to donate to the next Heartland Honor Flight, which is scheduled for this month, you can send a check to Heartland Honor Flight VFW, P O Box 4552, Lincoln, NE 68502. Depending on donations the program will restart in the spring. For more information on the program visit http://www.vfwne.com .



For the rest of the story on Terry's trip see The Friend Sentinel

Election 2008 - The Results

The Exeter Election Board spent 12 hours on Tuesday checking names, taking signatures, passing out ballots and collecting the completed ballots. The ladies who served are pictured from the left Bethine Leif, Sue DeJonge, Pat Koca, Elaine Krejci and Bonnie Cudaback.

For the full tally of Fillmore County Election results please visit election results
The results are now posted but you have to use Internet Explorer as your browser to see them. As far as Exeter goes, the unofficial results are:

Village Board Members elected:

Kathy Erdkamp
Alan Michl
Mitchell Schlegelmilch

School Board Members elected:

Annette Gloystein
Tim Pribyl
Jim Zeleny

The proposition to eliminate township board did NOT pass.

Junior Fire Patrol Graduates

The Exeter Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department again this October provided all local 5th graders the training necessary to become a member of the “Junior Fire Patrol”.
The program is offered each October to coincide with “Fire Prevention Week”. Because of the great success expressed by the parents, the kids and the instructors, the Exeter Department has offered this program for a number of years. The kids participated in a structured class to include written assignments and they experience hands on use of fire fighting equipment. Students in attendance at all meetings were especially acknowledged with certification as “Junior Fire Marshal’s”. The kids are taught many aspects of fire safety, fire prevention, home escape planning, home hazards, and basic first aid. Greg’s Affiliated donated cookie treats each class, FNIA donated class materials and Casey’s donated graduation pizza’s. The primary volunteer instructors for 2008 were: Hope Androyna, Assistant Chief - Tim Axline, Junior Fire Patrol Chairman - Edward Mark, Greg Yound, Chief - John Mueller, Rescue Captain - Alan Michl, Doug Papik and Rusty Ruhl. These volunteers for our children are what make small town life truly part of the “Nebraska Good Life.”

The 2008 graduate class:

Elliot Erdkamp, Janey Due, Spencer Papik, Brianna Beatham, Sean Maxson

St. Stephens Altar Society Salad Luncheon and Card Party

Meet the Exeter-Milligan School Board Candidates

Annette Gloystein

Ben Horne
Tim Pribyl

Jim Zeleny

^{For full interviews see} http://www.pioneerpub.com/sentinelinsert.html

Village of Exeter Receives Grant for Recycling Trailer

The Village of Exeter has been notified that they will receive a grant from the Nebraska State Recycling Association. The $13,500 awarded to the village is earmarked to purchase a recycling sorting trailer which will be placed closed to downtown.

This trailer will allow all residents to sort and drop off their own recycling whenever they want to. Currently, Exeter area recyclers must meet volunteers at the recycling trailer just outside of town on the second Saturday of the month during the hour and half the trailer is open.

On Wednesday, July 30th, Steve Andrews, a representative of the Nebraska State Recycling Association, met with Joyce Votipka and Leesa Bartu. They toured the town with Andrews, showing him the current trailers location and its downfalls. Andrews then asked to see the rest of the village asking questions about economic development and growth within the village. He was most impressed with the overwhelming response to the swimming pool bond issue.

The recycling trailer will be built in Nebraska by Dempster Industries out of Beatrice. It should be ready in the next six weeks and be in place before the holidays. The Village Board has not determined the final resting place of the trailer but the public will be informed when it is place. For more information post your questions here on the village of exeter blog or call Leesa Bartu at 266-3651.

Townships, Supervisors and Commissioners - What does this all mean to Fillmore County Residents?

This is the chance for all Fillmore County residents to voice their opinion on how they think the county should take care of their roads. A vote at the ballot box on Tuesday, will decide on whether or not to dissolve the 16 townships in the county.

This proposition was on the ballot in November of 1992 according to Fillmore County Clerk, Amy Nelson. According to Nelson, 2080 residents voted to continue the townships with 1178 to dissolve. Currently 27 counties in Nebraska operate under a township government but residents in Buffalo and Phelps County along with Fillmore will have the issue on the ballot in November.

Larry Biester, a member of the Geneva Township Board, has been an active voice in encouraging the supervisors to place the proposition on the ballot. He has served on the board for 21 years. “I have seen it when it really worked good and now it just doesn’t want to work,” said Biester.

The Exeter-Fairmont Township has also been running in the black mostly struggling with keeping members on the board and maintainers on the roads. Larry Cudaback, a member of the Exeter-Fairmont Township board repeated the thoughts of Biester claiming, “We spend a couple thousand dollars a year for insurance and the county already has that so it’s just a duplicate. Then the annual reports and audits and all takes quite a bit, too.”

Under the proposition Fillmore County Supervisors will become Commissioners in 2011 if the measure is passed.

See the full story at http://www.pioneerpub.com/sentinelinsert.html

Fillmore County Antiques Road Show

The Fillmore County Antiques Road Show had something for everyone.

The event, sponsored by Fillmore County Senior Services, featured Tom Bassett, professional appraiser, out of Lincoln. He recently participated in similar event in Seward where Fillmore County Senior Services director Brenda Motis had the opportunity to review both Bassett and the program.

According to Motis, Bassett was impressed with the quality of items brought to the show. A few of the pieces were not worth a great amount of money, but as family heirlooms Bassett recognized that they were priceless.

The program went "amazingly well," according to Motis, "The support from not only the community of Exeter but the surrounding communities was wonderful. The success of the event is attributed to the support we received from local businesses serving as corporate sponsors, the Exeter and Milligan churches, Exeter Senior Center and Milligan Senior Citizen's Organizations all providing the pies and sandwiches for the food stand."

See the full story at http://www.pioneerpub.com/sentinelinsert.html