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Overview:
Students are probably familiar with some general news sources, such as the daily newspaper or the nightly TV news. They are less likely to know about "specialty" sources such as geographic or environmental news Web sites.
This lesson will introduce students to National Geographic News and have them find several articles about recent geographic and environmental developments. Students will map the locations these news stories describe and explain how maps can help them learn about what's going on around the world.
Connections to the Curriculum:
Geography, language arts
Connections to the National Geography Standards:
Standard 18: "How to apply geography to interpret the present and plan for the future"
Time:
Two to three hours
Materials Required:
Objectives:
Students will
- describe the types of news they find at a variety of news Web sites;
- list and summarize today's headlines from National Geographic News, and label the news stories' locations on a world map;
- summarize three to five additional articles, and label those articles' locations on the map; and
- write paragraphs describing how this activity has helped them learn about what's going on in the world in geographic terms.
Geographic Skills:
Acquiring Geographic Information
Organizing Geographic Information
Answering Geographic Questions
Analyzing Geographic Information
S u g g e s t e d P r o c e d u r e
Opening:
Ask students to name different news sources. They might mention newspapers, TV, radio, magazines, the Internet, or other sources. List their ideas on the board, and ask them to describe the ways that they and their parents access the news.
Discuss with the class the different types of news stories they have seen or heard. For example, have they heard any news stories about people who live in Washington, D.C.? Have they heard stories about the environment or other countries?
Development:
Divide the class into small groups or pairs, and have students spend a few minutes browsing the following Web sites. Ask them to list words describing the types of news they see at each site (e.g., environmental, political, or kid-related).
National Geographic News (geography- and environment-related news)
Environmental News Network (news about the environment)
Scholastic News (news geared toward fourth graders)
CNN (national and world news, particularly about U.S. politics)
Discuss students' lists as a class. What types of information can they get at each news Web site? Where might they go in the future if they want to read today's political headlines? What about if they want to read the latest news related to geography?
Ask students what they think the purpose of geographic news is. Why might we want information about different places in the world, the environment, or new mapping techniques? List their ideas on the board.
Have groups or pairs return to National Geographic News. Have groups list today's headlines and write one to three sentences summarizing each article. If necessary, help them understand what the articles are about.
Give students blank outline maps of the world, and ask them to map the locations mentioned in the news stories they have listed.
Have groups browse the National Geographic News site and select three to five additional articles that interest them. Have them list these articles' headlines and write brief summaries of each one. Then have them label the locations discussed in these articles on their maps.
Closing:
Discuss how a news source such as National Geographic News can help students learn about world geography and geography-related news.
Suggested Student Assessment:
Ask students to select one of the news articles they have chosen during the course of the lesson. Have each student find a map online (or in print) that he or she feels would make a useful addition to the news story, then write a paragraph describing why the character of this map (e.g., political or topological) makes it a good choice.
Extending the Lesson:
Have each student choose one of the news stories from this lesson (or browse through the National Geographic News site to select a new one) and summarize it in a short paragraph. This paragraph will be the beginning of each student's personal "news journal."
Have students follow the topics covered in their articles over a period of time, using additional news sources (either on the Internet or in print) to find more information about them. Ask them to keep track of the dates of new developments on their issues or new articles they find and to summarize each one in their journals.
Label the locations of each student's chosen news topic on a class world wall map, and periodically have students report to the class on the latest information on their topics.
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