plank

Everyday

1. A plank is a long, flat piece of wood. tree →
2. The plank is also an exercise where you hold your body straight like a board, resting on your arms and toes. tree →
3. A plank can be one main idea of a plan, as in a political plan. tree →

In the lessons

In maths: pieces of wood counted, cut or measured; length of planks; cutting into equal pieces. In building and D&T (design and technology): making shelves, bridges, treehouses. In PE: holding a plank for 30 seconds. In stories: pirates make prisoners «walk the plank».

Examples

• A plank is 6 meters long. tree →
• He cuts the plank into 3 equal pieces. tree →
• They need 20 planks for the fence. tree →
• Each plank costs 4 dollars. tree →
• We laid a plank across the stream to cross it. tree →
• Hold the plank for 30 seconds. tree →
• In the story, the pirates made him walk the plank. tree →
• Dad nailed the planks together to make a treehouse floor. tree →
• The lovely Helena steps across the plank. tree →

Note

Cutting into equal pieces = divide. Planks laid end to end = add lengths. Trap: the number of cuts is one less than the number of pieces. Safety: carry long planks with care and watch for splinters and nails.

In Jewish tradition

Boards of wood used to build the hollow altar of the tabernacle.

Interpretation. The altar's hollow shape is read as made just as God showed Moses on the mountain.

Examples

• Hollow with planks shalt thou make it; as it hath been shown thee in the mount, so shall they make it. (Torah EXO.27.8, JPS 1917) tree →
• And he put the staves into the rings on the sides of the altar, wherewith to bear it; he made it hollow with planks. (Torah EXO.38.7, JPS 1917) tree →
• So he built the house, and finished it; and he covered in the house with planks of cedar over beams. (Prophets 1KI.6.9, JPS 1917) tree →
• Of cypress-trees from Senir have they fashioned all thy planks; they have taken cedars from Lebanon to make masts for thee. (Prophets EZK.27.5, JPS 1917) tree →

Note

Cutting into equal pieces = divide. Planks laid end to end = add lengths. Trap: the number of cuts is one less than the number of pieces. Safety: carry long planks with care and watch for splinters and nails.