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The election on November 3, 2015 will give Sherman voters the opportunity to renew the Sherman Street Sales Tax Initiative which provides more than $1 million each year to fix Sherman’s roads. The tax is just 1/8 of a cent on purchases but it provides a full third of the city’s budget for street repairs. Since Sherman’s retail areas are a regional shopping center, more than half of the tax is paid for by those who reside outside the City of Sherman.

Renewal of the Sherman Street Sales Tax Initiative will provide funding for a major expansion of Loy lake Road, easing traffic headaches through the city’s major retail hub. Expansion of Loy Lake Road is expected to begin in early 2016.

In addition to widening Loy Lake Road between U.S. Highway 75 and U.S. Highway 82 from two lanes to four, the City of Sherman has more than 60 extra miles of road repairs planned if the tax is renewed on November 3, 2015.

The Sherman Street Sales Tax Initiative has funded the repair of more than 150 miles of streets, including several major thoroughfares through town.

Northeast Texas Children’s Museum offers Dino Math for third graders.

What is the length of your dinosaur in inches and centimeters? What is the mass of a baseball in grams and ounces? How does a thermometer reflect a change in temperature? Third graders answer these and other questions during the Dino Math Measurement Workshop at the Children’s Museum.

The workshop focuses on measurement skills because this is generally an area of weakness on the state tests. The students rotate through three stations. One station will give students an opportunity to compare and predict the weight of objects in grams and ounces using rocker balances. Students will relate these measurements to weight and mass. A second station  will acquaint students with ounces, cups, pints, quarts, and gallons. Another station will include measurement of length and width using inches, centimeters and non-standard methods. They will also measure the temperature of water using a thermometer.

“Offering a curriculum to support classroom teachers gives the Museum an additional function in meeting the needs of children,” said Sharline Freeman, Museum Executive Director. “Although teachers go to workshops, having workshops for students is more unusual. We are so glad that the Museum can offer this program.”

The program gives teachers a point of reference for measurement as they teach math concepts throughout the year in the classroom. Teachers and students experience hands-on activities that are already set up and organized.

“The Dino Math Workshop covers the measurement concepts that I will be teaching during the year.” one teacher said.  “I’m not able to provide this type of  hands-on activity in the classroom and the kids have so much fun with the activities,” another reported.

The program continues for three weeks ending on November 18. Teachers may call the Museum at 903-886-6055 for additional information