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Biographical Information

Bobbi Klaus' standards-based fifth-grade curriculum at West Elementary School in Carlinville contains a strong connection to the real world. Her students become reporters and editors as they produce a newspaper about fellow students and staff, or census takers and statisticians collecting data on attendance and room temperature. Each student earns "pay" for good grades and behavior, which they later redeem for rewards. Mrs. Klaus developed a science unit to study local coal mines and received a grant to take students on a two-day field trip to a coal mining exhibit in Chicago. She created a student-run store to help build students' knowledge and skills in math, economics and marketing, and has developed curricular materials on the project for fellow teachers.