Tag Archives: Newspapers

Cinco de Mayo

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Cinco de Mayo is a national holiday in Mexico, but it is also widely celebrated by Mexican-Americans in the United States. The holiday, which in Spanish means the “Fifth of May,” commemorates the Battle of Puebla, when Mexican patriots stopped a French invasion. It often is  confused with Mexico’s Independence Day, which is Sept. 16.
The Battle of Puebla victory was significant in that the smaller, less well-equipped army toppled the bigger, stronger one.

To honor the day, people throughout Mexico, as well as many cities throughout the United States, celebrate with festivals and fiestas, enjoying traditional Mexican food and special music and dances. People often don clothes of red and green — two of the colors of the Mexican flag (along with white).  -McClatchy Newspapers

ACTIVITIES from the KRP Ultimate Holiday Activity Guide

While most Mexican-Americans celebrate the traditional American holidays, many also continue to observe the major holidays of their homeland, such as Cinco de Mayo. Often, they do so with fiestas. Explain to students that fiesta means festival, a colorful celebration that can include fireworks, dancing, the ringing of bells, parades, and plenty of food and drink. Another Mexican tradition, the pinata, is also usually present. Pinatas, which are commonplace in many American celebrations, are usually made of papier-mache and are shaped like animals. Find a papier-mache “recipe” and old newspapers and help your students make a pinata for Cinco de Mayo. Display their work throughout the school.

Discuss other ways Mexican-Americans have had an influence on American society and your community. Ask students to find and clip newspaper stories and photos that illustrate this influence. They can create a bulletin board display in honor of this important Mexican national holiday.

Mexico is an important American neighbor. Things that happen in Mexico often affect the United States and vice versa. Have students look for a news story about an event or happening in Mexico that will have an impact on the United States. Allow them to discuss their conclusions. Then have them look for a U.S. story that might have an effect on Mexico.

Cool it: the good, the bad and what you can do about global warming

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Is there anything better than a warm, sunny day? All winter, we wait for the weather to warm up so we can throw off our sweaters and pull on our shorts. Warm days let us play in the parks and playgrounds, ride our bikes or head for the swimming pool.

But could our weather be getting too warm? Scientists think so. Environmental scientists and geoscientists study the Earth and its history. They measure and track all kinds of information so they can help us protect the environment. Scientists tell us what may happen in the future and give advice on taking care of our wonderful planet.

This NIE tab, Cool it: The Good, the Bad and What You Can Do About Global Warming was produced by KRP and distributed by the NIE Institute.

Download the tab by clicking here

Note: if you are going to print this pdf, you will need to adjust your print setting to fit on page. The pdf is bigger than 8.5 x 11 (normal print size.)

Spring Holidays

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From KRP’s The Ultimate Holiday Activity Guide. Here are some holidays that are observed in March and sometimes in April.

The Christian observances of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter, and the Jewish Passover are important religious holidays that fall in March or April. The Eastern Orthodox Easter, called Pascha, also falls into this time period.

Spring holy days provide many opportunities for you to discuss such concepts as tolerance and respect for each other’s beliefs. Begin a discussion of tolerance by explaining to students that tolerance means to put up with practices and beliefs that are different from your own. Then ask them to find five items in the newspaper: stories, photos and comics that are examples of tolerance or intolerance. Conclude by asking them to describe the effects of the acts of tolerance or intolerance in each example.

Instruct students to find a newspaper photo that shows diversity among a group of people. Ask: What differences do you see between the people pictured? Have students discuss the level of tolerance or intolerance portrayed in the photo.

Celebrate NIE Week with this FREE Resource!

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March 4-8 is Newspapers in Education Week.  To celebrate, we are offering this free newspapers activity guide, “I Know I Read it in the Newspaper.”

What was the final score of the game last night? Is it supposed to rain on Friday? What movies are playing?  Wouldn’t it be fun to have all the answers? It’s easy when you read the newspaper every day. “I Know I Read It in the Newspaper” takes you through the newspaper from front to back. It covers the different types of news, sports, features and advertising. It even includes a newspaper scavenger hunt. This guide was produced by KRP and distributed by the NIE Institute.

Click on the following link to download the guide

 I Know I Read it in the Newspaper

Newspapers are great for kids of all ages. Here are some activities from the Newspaper Association of America Parent Newspaper Guide to get you started:

1. Play a game with the index section of the newspaper. Read it with your child, or have your child read it to you. Have your child locate each section as you call out the page numbers. How are newspaper page numbers different than those in textbooks?

2. Walk your child through the entire newspaper. Discuss what kind of information can be found in the different sections.

3. After reading news stories, have your child tell you the Five Ws (who, what, where, when, why) and the H (how).

4. See if your family can predict the content of a newspaper story by only reading the headline.

5. Find news articles, pictures and advertisements in the newspaper that you think would tell about life today. Imagine that you and your child are responsible for preparing a scrapbook that you will give to your grandchildren and great grandchildren. Include things that you have in your home – or that are common in people’s homes today.

March is Women’s History Month

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Information and activities are from KRP’s The Ultimate Holiday Activity Guide.”

March is National Women’s History Month

Schools and communities have been celebrating March as Women’s History Month since 1987. As you plan your classroom celebration, consider creating a bulletin board display of women in history or publishing a Women’s History Month newsletter. You could also stage a play about a milestone in women’s history or sponsor a school debate to discuss women’s issues.In addition, you can use the newspaper to demonstrate the effect that women have on society today, as well as illustrate the contributions women have made in the past.

Consider the following activities:

1. Encourage students to keep a scrapbook of newspaper stories about women who achieve success or make a difference in people’s lives.

2. Tell students about Deborah Samson, a young woman who in 1782 disguised herself as a man to serve in the U.S. Armed Forces during the Revolutionary War. Samson could have faced execution for lying to the army, but she served fearlessly. Now, have students find a story about a woman who exhibited bravery and courage in the line of duty, a military officer, policewoman, firefighter, etc. Allow them to share their stories and discuss whether a woman would have been allowed to do such a job 20, 50, or 100 years ago.

3. Talk about women in government and the many ways they serve as governors, senators, cabinet secretaries, and in other positions once held only by men. Compare the number of female political figures featured in the newspaper to the number of male political figures. Ask them to discuss their conclusions.

WOMEN’S HISTORY GUIDE  This guide from the NIE Institute provides biographies of 45 historic women celebrating their accomplishments. A newspaper lesson activity is provided with each bio related to the woman’s area of achievement.

To download click on the following link: legacy.grandforksherald.com/pdfs/WomensHistoryGuide[1].pdf

Celebrate Newspapers in Education Week with FREE curriculum

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March 4-8 is NIE Week.

Newspapers in Education or NIE for short, is a nationwide program where educators use the newspaper to teach a variety of subjects in the classroom. There are many FREE activity guides and teaching materials available to assist you.

This year, the American Press Institute is partnering with the Newseum on curriculum that emphasizes the newspaper as an educational resource.

Lessons focus on the following topics, click on the titles to download the material:

Newspapers in Your Life

  • What’s News Where?
  • The First Rough Draft of History

In the Newsroom

  • The Fairness Formula
  • Planning for the Unpredictable

Media Literacy

  • Where News Comes From
  • Evaluating the News

This free curriculum features six lessons aligned with Common Core State Standards. Lesson plans incorporate existing Newseum resources into activities and student worksheets. They are geared toward middle- and high-school students, but include extension activities for elementary students.

Presidents’ Day Activities

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Information and activities are from KRP’s The Ultimate Holiday Activity Guide and News Relief’s A Plan for All Seasons both from the NIE Institute.


Presidents’ Day is a federal holiday and is observed on the 3rd Monday in the month of February.

Presidents’ Day officially observes the birthdays of two famous American leaders: George Washington (Feb. 22) and Abraham Lincoln (Feb. 12). However, many Americans take this day to honor all those who have served the United States as president.

The office of the U.S. president is the most powerful elective office in the world, partly because he is the leader of the world’s richest, most productive nation but also because he wears many hats. He serves as chief executive, commander-in-chief, chief diplomat, chief lawmaker, and chief of state. Find out more about each of these roles. Then write a Help Wanted ad for president of the United States. Check the classified section of the newspaper for examples of Help Wanted ads.

Newspaper ads often use a holiday or seasonal theme to sell products or services. Businesses often want to attract attention to those people who have some time off from work and might be deciding how to spend extra time and/or money.

Skim through the pages of the newspaper to find examples of ads that refer to Presidents’ Day, Abraham Lincoln or George Washington. Some ads may only use symbols or pictures that refer to this holiday. You may find other ads that use words or phrases to refer to the holiday. Other ads may use a combination of both.

Select two ads from the newspaper that refer to Presidents’ Day. One ad should be an example of what you think is an effective ad. The other ad should be one that you think is not so effective.  Answer the following questions about each.

THE EFFECTIVE AD 

1. What is the ad trying to sell?

2. What type of symbols or words are used to make a connection between the product/service and Presidents’ Day?

3. Explain why you think this ad is effective.

THE INEFFECTIVE AD

1. What is the ad trying to sell?

2. What type of symbols or words are used to make a connection between the product/service and Presidents’ Day?

3. Explain why you think this ad is not as effective as the first ad you selected.

FREE Germ Patrol Resource from Kid Scoop

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Current news reports on the virulent flu season upon us has sparked Kid Scoop to create a Kid Scoop Special Edition dedicated to helping kids take simple steps to reduce their risk of infection.

The guides focus on the importance of regular hand washing, explains how germs and bacteria are spread and how infections attack healthy cells in the body. This information is presented with engaging, standards-based educational activities.

Thank you to Kid Scoop and Content That Works for providing these wonderful  resources FREE OF CHARGE!

To download the guides, click on the following links:

Germ Patrol  http://bit.ly/XKFv7x

Scrub Squad  http://bit.ly/TGblEh

 

Black History Month Resource

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African-Americans have a wide ranging and interesting history in the United States. Yet for many years, that history was ignored. And then Carter G. Woodson stepped in. A teacher and founder of what is now The Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History, Woodson began pushing for recognition of African-American history, especially in schools. In 1926, he established Negro History Week. Negro History Week eventually grew into Black History Month, an event celebrated nationwide every February. Today, Black History Month not only provides an opportunity to learn about African-American history but also to foster an appreciation for the African-American culture and its significant contributions to this country.

Here is a supplement you can download and use in the classroom. “Pride in Color” takes a brief look at the history and cultural contributions of African-Americans. While it is impossible to cover the entire scope of the subject, the information and activities provided in this supplement will help you understand, among other things, where African-Americans have been and how far they have come. The guide was produced by KRP Productions and distributed by the NIE Institute.

Download by clicking on the following link: http://legacy.grandforksherald.com/pdfs/Pride%20in%20Color.pdf

Note: if you are going to print this pdf, make sure to adjust your print setting to fit on page. The pdf is bigger than 8.5 x 11 (normal print size.)

For additional resources visit: http://www.examiner.com/lesson-plans-in-national/black-history-series-henry-johnson-wwi-soldier?CID=examiner_alerts_article