Literacy Changes the World
Jamie Wojtowicz Kingsley, Monroe 2-Orleans BOCES
*Literacy and ELA 6-12, Issue 2*
A Little About Me...
Our acrobatic cat, Peppa (not pictured: cat #2, Georgie)
Our hunt for a Christmas tree
My big, extended family!
Hello and Welcome Back!
The first issue of this newsletter referenced an idea for a "COVID-19 Time Capsule" unit. That idea elicited many questions, but the one I received the most was: "How much guidance should I provide as a teacher? Should this serve as a "fun" project or should I use it as an opportunity to create standards-based lessons?"
My piece of advice? It depends on your purpose and goal(s). Do you want students to use this as a springboard for documenting Covid-19 life, but without a lot of expectations attached? Or do you want to use as an incentive for participation in virtual office hours and meetings? For example, you might run a friendly "Best Photo of the Week" contest. Students can submit photos that capture their week/experience and everyone can anonymously vote during the meetings!
Perhaps you want to have it all: a balance of focused, standards-based lessons and direct instruction, as well as some open-ended activities meant to help students bond.
Included in this issue is a mini-unit idea for creating reading lessons for middle school students (and maybe high school students, with adaptations) centered on articles about COVID-19. The mini-unit is broken into two focuses: reading like a journalist (the focus of THIS issue) and writing like a journalist (the focus of the next issue).
As always, please feel free to email me with any ideas, questions, or feedback! I also created an anonymous survey at the bottom of this issue!
Sincerely,
Jamie
"Reading Like a Journalist" Mini-Unit Suggested Resources
Closely Reading Photos & Images
Closely Reading Articles
Intro to Journalism:
- Read Write Think: Feature vs. news stories
- PBS: What is "Newsworthy?"
- Heart Lakes Literacy Committee (video about writing a news report)
Newspaper Jargon:
Sites with Free Articles & Lessons
- Tween Tribune
- Scholastic Kid Press Corps (articles BY kids, FOR kids)
- DOGO News
- Democrat and Chronicle
- New York Times Learning Network
- NewsELA (articles written at various Lexile levels)
And, don't forget your local city, town, or county newspaper!
DISCLAIMER: Be sure to get school and parent permission FIRST! Not approved? Keep the letters on a shared drive until students are seniors!
ELA Standards Connection
Suggested ELA Standards for this mini-unit: R1, R2, R4, R5, R9, L4, W2
(Note-these are the anchor standards, not grade-level specific standards. Be sure to visit the NYS Department of Education website to reference your specific grade-level standard here).
Get in Touch...
Email: jwojtowi@monroe2boces.org
Twitter: @ELATeach34