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Resources to help you incorporate the newspaper into your curriculum.

NEW! Newspapers In Education Wikispace - Introducing Hot Apple Pie

Updated daily, weekly and monthly, the NIE wiki gives you lots of reasons to use the newspaper in your classroom and to return again and again. It's easy, turnkey and fun! Here's what the site offers:

Go to http://nie.hotapplepie.wikispaces.net to check it out today! You will need both the username and password: madisonnie to access the site. Enjoy!

NIE Week Teacher's Guide — Newspapers Now: Developing Comprehension and Research Skills With the Newspaper

Newspapers in Education Week, which reinforces a positive and relevant lifetime reading habit in students by engaging them with an authentic text — the newspaper — is always celebrated the first week in March. In honor of this week, we have made a new teacher's guide available free from our website that can be used anytime of the year.

"Newspapers Now" revolves around the theme that newspapers can have an impact on students' lives today. While the delivery format now includes electronic editions, the content continues to be relevant to people's needs and interests whether it is in print or online. The activities in the guide address comprehension and research skills, but the focus is on the value of newspaper content.

The 53-page guide features 15 lesson plans, each with a student activity sheet. Also, included in the guide are 15 elementary-level pages for younger students. They parallel the lesson plans and activities in the guide.

Download this lesson plan (Acrobat PDF, 2.7 MB; requires Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader software to view and print. Adobe Reader is free and downloadable from Adobe's Web site.)

You Toon - Wisconsin State Journal's Cartoon Caption Contest

The Wisconsin State Journal's editorial cartoonist, Phil hands, draws an editorial cartoon every other week without the joke included. It's then up to readers to fill in a phrase or two to make the cartoon funny. Most of the cartoons he draws have an empty "word bubble" above one of the characters, who are often politicians. Readers compete to see who can submit the funniest line.

The winner's caption, chosen by the WSJ staff, is published in the following Sunday's newspaper with the line included in the cartoon. A picture of the winner will be printed in the newspaper next to their cartoon. Winners also receive a copy of their cartoon signed by Phil Hands. Also published is a list of the runner-ups.

Entries should be e-mailed to wsjopine@madison.com no later than the Wednesday immediately following the captionless cartoon. Please type "You Toon" in the subect line and include full name, address and phone number for verification if you win.

Welcome to PARADE classroom! Each week we'll offer updated current events lesson plans and activities that are FREE for you to download and use with the Wisconsin State Journal and The Capital Times. Order classroom newspapers.

Just click on the Parade Classroom logo above for weekly Teacher's Guides.

The News Game

This weekly current events quiz, brought to you by the Wisconsin State Journal, is designed specifically for middle and high school teachers, students and their parents. It is a comprehensive and rigorous review of current events taking place in the community, state, nation and world.

Questions at four different levels of difficulty will appear in eight categories, from sports to business, government to geography. The News Game (questions and answers) will be published every Saturday. If you would like more information on this weekly feature, please contact Teryl Franklin, Assistant City Editor, at tfranklin@madison.com.

First Things First: Using the Newspaper to Teach the Five Freedoms of the First Amendment

The First Amendment is the cornerstone of our democracy. This 41-page teachers guide introduces the five freedoms of the First Amendment to students at all grade levels. Each freedom has one elementary level activity, one middle school activity and one high school activity. Perfect for Constitution Day, September 17!

Download this lesson plan (Acrobat PDF, 264 KB; requires Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader software to view and print. Adobe Reader is free and downloadable from Adobe's Web site.)

Speaking of a Free Press

More than 200 years of quotations about freedom of the press. These quotes can spark discussion and cause people to think about this freedom that we tend to take for granted. Every history, government and civics teacher in your circulation area should have a copy of these 25 pages of quotations. It is a must for all school journalism advisors! Some of these quotations are well know but there may be many you have never seen before.

Download this lesson plan (Acrobat PDF, 112 KB; requires Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader software to view and print. Adobe Reader is free and downloadable from Adobe's Web site.)

Newspapers Maintain the Brain: A Teacher's Guide for Using the Newspaper to Enhance Basic Skills

For teachers the newspaper offers a special attraction. It has been called the living textbook and it lives up to that name. The newspaper can be used to enhance skills in reading, writing, listening, speaking, math, social studies and science. Critical thinking is the natural outgrowth of using a newspaper to learn. Unlike textbooks, which are several years outdated by the time they get into students' hands, the newspaper comes alive with information. The newspaper expands the curriculum with an unlimited amount of information to use as background for learning activities.

Download this lesson plan (Acrobat PDF, 1.3 MB; requires Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader software to view and print. Adobe Reader is free and downloadable from Adobe's Web site.)

Newshounds

"Newshounds" is written specifically for 4th-6th grade students to provide them with an overview of the newspaper – its content and writing styles. Activities are aimed at developing reading, writing, listening and speaking skills, as well as students' ability to think critically.

"Newshounds" consists of 10 units. Each unit focuses on a different aspect of the newspaper and contains a teacher's notes page, a fact sheet, two student activities and a newspaper knowledge certificate.

This curriculum guide is free to NIE teachers.

Download the Newshounds Teacher's Guide (Acrobat PDF, 2.1 MB; requires Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader software to view and print. Adobe Reader is free and downloadable from Adobe's Web site.)

The Ultimate Sunday Activity Guide

This 48-page teacher's guide offers tons of activities utilizing every section of the Sunday newspaper from the business pages and all those ads to the sports section and the comics. To order, contact us at lmaly@madison.com or (608) 252-6004.

And don't forget to order the Sunday Wisconsin State Journal, too! Delivery to schools on Mondays is available in some areas. Order classroom newspapers.

All Together Now: Living and Learning in a Multicultural Society

The more we know about people who are different from us in some way, the more we can understand what's happening in our local communities, our country and the world. The newspaper is an excellent tool to help you expand your knowledge so you can increase your understanding of the world. Look at the international, national, state and local news sections in the newspaper. You'll find new information about citizens of other countries. You'll also learn of the contributions made by different ethnic groups in this country and about how friends and neighbors celebrate their cultures in this community.

Download this lesson plan (Acrobat PDF, 92 KB; requires Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader software to view and print. Adobe Reader is free and downloadable from Adobe's Web site.)

Reading First – NIE!

Now available, "Reading First – NIE!" is a curriculum guide based on the No Child Left Behind legislation. The newspaper-based activities suggested are meant to supplement and enrich each of the five elements recommended by the National Reading Panel: Phonemic Awareness, Phonics, Fluency, Vocabulary and Text Comprehension. It also contains ideas for parents to use with their children at home, as well as national trends in reading instruction. Using the newspaper – an authentic resource – with this guide can provide one of the most comprehensive resources to help a child become a reader.

Download this free guide (Acrobat PDF, 1.9 MB; requires Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader software to view and print. Adobe Reader is free and downloadable from Adobe's Web site.)

Wisconsin History Day by Day - www.wishistory.com

Wisconsin History Day by Day offers students and teachers one of the largest collections of Wisconsin-related history links on the Web. The historical tidbits are arranged by date or can be accessed through an alphabetical index. Besides the links, Wisconsin History Day by Day includes a listing of book titles focusing on Wisconsin's colorful history, interesting facts for each topic, vocabulary, links to online archives and more. Many of the dates and topics include copies of the actual newspaper article covering the historical event. The Web site is a great reference resource for students working on history projects, term papers, extra credit reports or independent study.

Sterling Hall Bombing and Black Student Protests

A series of famous front page news topics will be compiled online by the Wisconsin State Journal. These collections will provide you with first-hand coverage of some of the most fascinating events in the history of Madison. So far, two are complete.

First is a compilation of Wisconsin State Journal articles covering the dramatic event of the Sterling Hall bombing, which can be found at www.madison.com/library/LEE/sterlinghall.html. Second is a series of articles focusing on the black student protests on the UW campus during February 1969. This one is at www.madison.com/library/LEE.

www.newsvoyager.com

This site hot links to newspaper homepages from every state and many foreign countries. This is a wonderful resource for doing an online target date activity with your class. (See Target Date below.)"

Target Date

Target Date involves compiling a collection of newspapers published on the same date and using them in a comparison study. Variations can range from comparing news coverage to cost of living, or can be incorporated into geography and state history studies.

The date can be selected at random or can be one of special significance because of its expected news; such as the day before or after the Super Bowl or on a holiday like Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday.

Students write business letters to newspapers participating in the program in advance of the date that has been selected for their Target Date. A list with contact names and addresses are provided to those interested in participating.

If you are interested in more details of this project or ideas for what you can do with Target Date newspapers, please call (608) 252-6004 or e-mail lmaly@madison.com.

This is a project that is sure to get kids excited about the newspaper this semester!

Curriculum Guide Library

We have a wide variety of curriculum guides spanning many subjects and all age levels. Guides are free to NIE teachers. Read the list of available guides.