The Mini Page
Mini Page activities meet many state and national educational standards. Each week we identify standards that relate to The Mini Page’s content and offer activities that will help your students reach them.
Issue 3
Our First Amendment
This week’s standards:
- Students understand the purpose of government. (Social Studies: Power, Authority and
Governance)
- Students identify key ideals of the United States∂ democratic republican form of government. (Social Studies: Civic Ideals and Practice)
Activities:
1. Draw a picture showing you exercising one of the freedoms in the First Amendment. Write a sentence or two telling about your picture. 2. Cut out newspaper words and pictures to make a collage about the First Amendment. Include these examples on your collage: religious services, news about the state or national government, and news about a community meeting. 3. Find a news story about a decision made by a local government group, such as a city council or school board. Write a paragraph explaining what will happen to people in your community because of that decision. 4. Which of the First Amendment freedoms would protect your right to (a) put a Christmas nativity display on your lawn, (b) hold a peaceful demonstration outside a government office, (c) write a letter to the editor of this newspaper, and (d) ask a state legislature to propose a new law? 5. Find a news story about a decision made by the national government. Identify different groups who will support the decision and write a brief paragraph explaining why each group supports the decision. Identify different groups who will oppose the decision and write a brief paragraph explaining why each group opposes the decision. Now write several sentences stating your position on the decision. (standards by Dr. Sherrye D. Garrett, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi)
Issue 4
World of Facts -
The Seven Continents
This week’s standards:
- Students understand the physical and human characteristics of places.
(Geography: Places and Regions)
- Students compute fluently and make reasonable estimates. (Mathematics: Numbers and Operations)
Activities:
1. Create your own continent. Draw its shape on a piece of paper. Put in mountains and rivers. Give your continent a name. Write a sentence telling about your continent. 2. Try to find news stories from as many continents as possible. Write the headlines from the stories on a piece of paper. Next to each headline, write the name of the country and continent where the news happens. Are you missing any continents? Why do you think the newspaper doesn't have stories from there? 3. Which continent would you visit if you wanted to (a) see a lot of snow and ice, (b) tropical rain forests and mountains, (c) a long river and huge desert, and (d) many different climates? 4. Use resource books and the Internet to learn more about one of the continents in today’s Mini Page. Use these questions to guide your research: What is the geographic location of the continent? What are its physical features‹rivers, mountains, shoreline, etc.? How does its geography relate to the continent’s natural resources? How do the natural resources affect its economy? How have the natural resources and economy of the continent influenced the social and cultural development of the people who live there? Write a detailed paragraph discussing your findings.
Issue 5
Jan. 27-Feb. 2
Happy Birthday, Boy Scouts! --
This week's standards:
- Students understand that physical
activity provides opportunities for enjoyment, challenge, self-expression and
social interaction. (Physical
Education)
- Students understand how groups and
institutions work to meet individual needs and promote the common good. (Social
Studies: Individuals, Groups and Institutions)
Activities:
1. Draw a picture of yourself doing an
activity boys learn about in the Boy Scouts. Write a sentence telling about
your picture.
2. Make a list of the Boy Scout merit
badges. Share the list with family members and friends.
Ask them to suggest a new merit badge.
What suggestions do they have? Was any new badge suggested by more than one
person?
3. Find a newspaper story about a
situation in which an individual or group needs help. Write several sentences
explaining how Boy Scouts could help in that situation.
4. Select three different merit badges
shown in today’s Mini Page. Find at least two items in the newspaper that could
be used to help a Boy Scout earn each badge. Explain your choices.
5. Prepare a new manual for young
people about how to survive in a different setting, such as a school or a city.
Include suggestions for how to find your way in that setting, what equipment
you would need and what skills you would find useful. Also include advice on
how to help other people in specific situations in that setting. Suggest at
least five merit badges for your setting.
(standards by
Dr. Sherrye D. Garrett, Texas A&M
University-Corpus Christi)
Issue 6
Feb. 3-9
Black History Sites --
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)
- Students use biographies and stories
to understand the individuals who are honored by the nation.
(Social Studies: History)
Activities:
1. Pick a building or park in your
neighborhood that might make a good national park site one day.
Draw the building/park. Write a
sentence telling why it is important.
2. Find a news story about an African-American
individual in your newspaper.
Which national park site do you think
that individual might like to visit? Write several sentences telling why the
individual might like that site.
3. Draw five large circles on a large
piece of paper. Label the circles:
Government/Politics,
Education, Arts/Entertainment, Sports and Business. Now cut out photos
and names of African-American individuals from the newspaper. Paste the photos
and names in the appropriate circle. Share your poster with a family member or
friend.
4. Which national park site would you
recommend to individuals interested in
(a) military
history, (b) music, (c) history of the civil rights movement, (d) education and
(e) African-American women?
5. Use resource books and the Internet
to learn more about one of the national park sites featured in today’s Mini
Page. Use these questions to guide your research: What person or persons were
connected with the history of the site? What time period in history does the
site represent? Who worked to have the person or history memorialized at the
site? Why do you think this is an important site? Write a paragraph discussing
your research.
(standards by
Dr. Sherrye D. Garrett, Texas A&M
University-Corpus Christi)
Issue 7
Feb. 10-16
The Second and Third Amendments
Working with the National Archives and
The Bill of Rights Institute, The Mini Page introduces kids to the Second
Amendment with an issue based on the times that the Second and Third Amendment
were written. Find out about the words kids show and the background of both
amendments.
Issue 8
Feb. 17-23
A Kid's Guide to Business
As many as 80
percent of new businesses fail. Many experts think that kids should know
the basic good business practices at an early age. The Mini Page works with an
expert, Lecturer Lawrence Gelburd of the Wharton
School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Issue 9
Feb. 24-March 2
The Polar Bear
The polar bear is in trouble! Polar
bears spend most of their time on ice in the Arctic seas. But this ice is melting
so rapidly, it is threatening the existence of the whole species of polar
bears. Bears are drowning and starving. Experts believe that if we don't do
something now, polar bears could disappear within 35 years, and polar bears
could be extinct in 100 years. But experts say it is not too late. We can fix
this if we act now.
Issue 10
March 3-March 9
Newspaper News Hounds
Using cartoons of news hounds, The Mini Page introduces kids to the many jobs at a newspaper. Find out what editors, graphic artists, editorial writers and many other news hounds do.
