ten ways to use newspapers in instruction. welcome lynette hazelton manager of volunteer tutors/ged...
TRANSCRIPT
TEN WAYS To Use
Newspapers In Instruction
WELCOME
Lynette Hazelton
Manager of Volunteer Tutors/GED Instructor [email protected]
215-568-2220 ext. 5510
WHO READS A NEWSPAPER?
The most likely to read newspapers are those with more education or more income, and who are white.
SOURCE: PEW Research Center
Less affluent and less educated folks lean on daytime talk shows for information .
SOURCE: PEW Research Center
Do Our Students Read Well Enough to Tackle a Newspaper?
SOURCE: PEW Research Center
The truth is, many newspapers have become too difficult for most adults to read
VS.
Periodical Grade LevelTimes of India 15
London Times 12
Los Angeles Times 12
Boston Globe 12
National Enquirer 12
Sydney Sun-Herald 12
China Daily 12
Atlantic Monthly 11
Better Homes and Gardens 11
Atlanta Constitution 11
Cleveland Plain Dealer 11
San Jose Mercury News 11
New Yorker 10
New York Times 10
Washington Post 10
USA Today 10
TV Guide 9
The Sun (UK Tabloid) 9
Reading Levels of Recent Articles
Newspaper Level
Metro 12.2 ( Seth Williams)
Philadelphia Daily News 11 (ACLU sues state over prisoners’ mental health care)
Philadelphia Inquirer 9.5 (Clinton)
New York Times 14.5(Clinton)
SOURCE: http://read-able.com/
READING LEVELS
•The average newspaper is written at the 11th-grade level, the tolerable limit for a 9th-grade reader.
READING LEVELS
People like to read recreationally two grades below their actual reading skill.
READING LEVELS
Sixth – eighth grade is the sweet spot of readability.
Ten Reasons Why I use Newspapers
•Authentic Engagement•Increase Awareness•Increase Intellectual Confidence•Civic Engagement •Improve Social Studies Knowledge
•Perspective Taking•Improve Consumer Awareness •Visual Literacy •Media Literacy•Past - Present Connections
My Instructional Goals
NEWSPAPERA supplemental resource
READINGAbility to reading
with comprehension and fluency
LISTENING Ability to actively
listen
WRITING Ability to write
coherent response
SPEAKINGAbility to hold
academic conversations
Ten uses of newspapers
WORDS
1. WORD FIND
Low Level• Have student select a passage of
at least one paragraph and highlight all the words that they know in a single article.
Higher Level• Have students select a passage
of at least three paragraphs and highlight words with which they are unfamiliar. First, try to guess the meaning from context clues? • Have students look up the
definitions and suggest a more familiar synonym.
2. HEADLINES
Low Level• Have students re-write headlines
into a complete sentence • Have students cut out headlines
from various newspapers and assemble them into a poem.
Higher Level• Have students compare headlines
from a tabloid and headlines from a more conservative newspaper.• Discuss the pros and cons of only
reading headlines for your news source?• Discuss the concept of
sensationalism. Have students find headline examples?
IMAGES
3. WEATHER REPORTLow Level
• Have students learn how to read a weather map. • Have students
learn the regions of the United States.
Higher Level
• Have students create their own color-coded weather map from information they gather.
4. Photographs Low Level
• Have students select a photograph from the newspaper and explain the story the photograph tell. • Have students identify
the photograph of “famous” newsmakers.
Higher Level
• Have students take photographs of problems in their neighborhood and write a compelling caption for each photograph.
5. EDITORIAL CARTOON • Lower Level Bring in an appropriate level cartoon and have students explain the issue. Discuss what different symbols stand for. • Higher Level Have students write a paragraph discussing the position of the cartoonist.
ROLE PLAY
6. YOU BE THE DEFENSE ATTORNEY Low Level
• Read students an article about a crime and ask them to determine how they would defend the alleged perpetrator based on the facts presented in the article.
Higher Level
• Have students pretend to be the defense team and work in small groups and read an article about a crime. Ask them how they would defend the alleged perpetrator based on the facts presented. Students must come to agreement.
Further Discussion: Which is better - To be innocent until proven guilty or guilty until proven innocent?
7. YOU BE THE ADVICE COLUMNIST Low Level
• Read a simple advice column and ask students to determine the question being asked and then provide an answer.
Higher Level
• Have students read an ethics-related problem , determine the relevant detail and the insiginficant detail and then provide an answer complete with rationale.
TAKE ACTION
8. LETTER TO THE EDITOR Low Level
• Pick an editorial that s/he has a position on and write and simple letter to the editor.
Higher Level
• Pick an editorial that s/he has a position on and write and actually send a business letter to the editor.
9. CONDUCT A SURVEYLow Level
• Pick a current controversial issue and ask ten of your friends, family, peers or co-workers their position on the issue . Create a chart to keep a record of your answers.
Higher Level
• Pick a current controversial issue and ask ten of your friends, family, peers or co-workers their position on the issue . Create a chart to keep a record of your answers. Include pertinent demographic information on your final report.
HAVE FUN
10. Play the games in the Newspaper
Final Notes
TEACHER READ ALOUDEffective literacy programs provide activities that support learning, and research has proven that reading aloud constructs a valuable link to becoming literate. When teachers model oral reading, they help students understand the structure of written language, expanding their knowledge of words, and enable them to learn new ways to use language.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCESMEDIA RESOURCES
HTTP://WWW.NIETEACHER.ORG/HTTP://LEARNING.BLOGS.NYTIMES.COM/?_R=0HTTP://NYTIMESINSCHOOL.COM/NY-TIMES-TEACHER-RESOURCES/HTTP://WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM/GNMEDUCATIONCENTRE/RESOURCES-FOR-TEACHERSHTTP://WWW.BBC.CO.UK/LEARNING/HTTP://WWW.MANYTHINGS.ORG/VOA/SCRIPTS/HTTP://WWW.AMERICANPRESSINSTITUTE.ORG/YOUTH-NEWS-LITERACY/RESOURCES/NEWSPAPER-IN-EDUCATION-GUIDES/
READABILITY CALCULATOR http://www.online-utility.org/english/readability_test_and_improve.jsp
