Las Vegas Newspapers in Education

Mini Page Archive - February 2008: Issue 5 - 8

How to Communicate -- Issue 5 -- Feb. 2-8, 2008

This week's standards:

Students adjust their use of spoken, written and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes. (English Language Arts)

Students use spoken, written and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information). (English Language Arts)

Activities:

1. Draw a picture of yourself speaking to a group of people. Under your picture, write three sentences about what you should do when you speak to a group.

2. Select a story from the newspaper that you find very interesting. Write three questions you would ask the reporter or the people in the story to learn more about the story.

3. Look at the facial expressions and body gestures of comic strip characters. Cut out at least three comic strips and explain what the expressions and gestures tell you about the feelings the characters are communicating in the strips.

4. Identify a newspaper story that you would like to discuss with (a) a close friend, (b) a family member,

(c) a group of friends, and (d) your class. Explain why you selected each story.

5. Select a news or feature story that you feel is important to share with others. Read the story carefully and prepare an outline for a presentation. Include the following in your outline: The opening statement you would make, several important points in the story and the closing statement you would make. Write a brief paragraph explaining why you selected the story, who you selected as the audience for the story and why you selected that group.

(standards by Dr. Sherrye D. Garrett, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi)

Discover China -- Issue 6 -- Feb. 9-15, 2008

This week's standards:

Students understand the physical and human characteristics of places.

(Geography: Places and Regions)

Students understand the characteristics, distribution and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics.

(Geography: Human Systems)

Activities:

1. Use newspaper words and pictures to create a collage that tells about China and Chinese history. Write a sentence about your collage.

2. Play a newspaper game with a friend. Each of you should have a colored marker. Then go through the newspaper and circle modern examples of items invented by the Chinese. Who has the most items circled?

3. Which Chinese inventions helped people (a) communicate better, (b) have better daily lives, (c) work better, and (d) travel?

4. Use the Internet to learn more about the Chinese practice of naming years for animals. Find the animal that represents the year you were born. Then find the animals representing the years that members of your family were born. Do the characteristics listed with each animal year seem to match you and your family members? Discuss the characteristics with your family.

5. Use resource books and the Internet to learn more about what happened when Hong Kong was returned to Chinese control. Use these questions to guide your research: How had life and government developed in Hong Kong under British control? How did life in Hong Kong compare with life in Communist China? How has life in Hong Kong changed now that control has returned to China? Write a paragraph discussing your research.

(standards by Dr. Sherrye D. Garrett, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi)

Following George's Rules -- Issue 7 -- Feb. 16-22

This week's standards:

Students understand people and events honored in commemorative holidays.

(History)

Students understand that history relates to events and people of other times and places by identifying examples of interesting Americans. (Social Studies: History)

Activities:

1. Draw a picture of George Washington in the middle of a large piece of paper. Now paste newspaper words and pictures that tell about Washington around your drawing. Share your drawing with friends.

2. Select the five rules of civility that you think are most important. Then interview family members and friends and ask them to name the two rules they think are most important. Ask them why they selected those rules. What rules were the most popular overall?

3. Look for civility in the comics pages. Use a colored marker to circle three comic strips where the characters are behaving the way Washington would want people to behave. Use a different colored marker to circle three strips where characters are not behaving well and should follow Washington's rules. What would you say to the misbehaving characters?

4. Find people or things in the newspaper that would help Washington (a) learn new information about the world, (b) be a better farmer, and (c) be a modern president. Share your choices with a friend.

5. Bring George Washington up to date. Write a letter to him about how the world has changed. Select one of these topics: the role of the president; changes in farming and agriculture; or people's behavior in the modern age. Use the Internet and the newspaper to research your topic. Then write your letter to our first president.

(standards by Dr. Sherrye D. Garrett, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi)

Get to Know Sojourner Truth -- Issue 8 -- Feb. 23-29

This week's standards:

Students understand that history relates to events and people of other times and places by identifying examples of interesting Americans. (Social Studies: History)

Activities:

1. What would Sojourner Truth carry in her backpack? Draw a large backpack on a piece of paper. Cut out newspaper pictures of items that tell something about Sojourner Truth's life. Write a sentence about the contents of your backpack.

2. Write the letters S-O-J-O-U-R-N-E-R down the left side of a piece of paper. Find newspaper words that describe Sojourner Truth and write them next to the letters. For example, you could use the word "strong" next to the letter S.

3. Create a "Sojourner's Legacy" display on a large piece of paper or poster board. On the board, put newspaper stories that show women and African-Americans in these areas: politics, community leaders, business, sports, entertainment and the comics.

4. Find an individual or an item in the newspaper that would have helped Sojourner Truth (a) raise her children, (b) communicate with many people, (c) travel to cities to give her speeches, and (d) influence political leaders.

5. Use resource books and the Internet to learn more about the abolition of slavery and the emancipation of slaves in the United States from Colonial times to the Civil War. Use these questions to guide your research: Which Colonies and early states allowed slavery? Why was slavery accepted in those areas? When did different Colonies/states end slavery? What forces or groups influenced the decisions that Colonies/states made to end slavery? Write a paragraph summarizing your findings.

(standards by Dr. Sherrye D. Garrett, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi)