AC Social Studies
Current Events in Social Studies
Miss Rothschild

Why Are We Studying This Anyway?

Background:

Every week there are hundreds of news stories related to the topics we are discussing in class. But how much of the news do you really consume (listen to, read, watch)? The goal of this assignment is to improve your general cultural literacy with respect to topics in economics and government/politics/civics/culture. In other words, I want you to see the connection between what we study and everyday life.

Assignment:

Improve your understanding of topics in the course by identifying news stories that you find relevant to our lessons – current and concluded. You may approach this by sitting down regularly to search out news stories; you may find that listening to some news radio for a given time every day or so will be sufficient. However works best for you, begin to take in more news related to the economy, culture, politics, and government.

When you find a story that really connects with you and/or with the material we are studying, take note of where you first learned the story – who is the source? Identify (1) the title of the story and (2) provide a printout of the story. Finally, (3)writetwo well-developed paragraphs explaining the connection between the story and what we have covered in class.

In the first paragraph, summarize the story in a minimum2-3 sentences. Then, make the connection to our content in a minimum 2-3 sentences. Explain why the news story relates to a specific standard and element.

In the second paragraph, address one or two of the questions and explain why you found the story interesting to share. See the submission requirements for correct formatting.

Questions to ponder for the second paragraph:

  • What new information did you learn?
  • What questions did the article raise but did not answer?
  • What did you learn from photographs? from charts and diagrams? from illustrations?
  • Did this article change you thinking on this topic? How?
  • Did the author weave opinions into facts? Can you find examples of each? Give several examples of facts from the article, and give several examples of opinions from the article.
  • Do you agree/disagree with the author? Why?
  • What inferences, interpretations, or connections can you make from closely reading the text?
  • What lessons can you learn from this policy, person, or movement?
  • What can you infer from this article about this particular time, place, or culture?

Approved Sources of Information: You may use a print story, a news podcast, a news radio story…but the story must be factual. No movies and no editorials. No encyclopedia articles with general information about a country. You do not need to request approval from the listed sources of information, butif your source of information is not listed, you must email me for source approval. Make sure you email for approval in advance, not on the day your article/story is due.

Approved Sources of Information

  • National Public Radio
  • BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation)
  • Public Radio International
  • American Public Media
  • The Economist
  • Smithsonian Magazine
  • The Wall Street Journal
  • The New Yorker
  • The Atlantic
  • The New York Times
  • The Washington Post
  • The Christian Science Monitor

Parameters:

Try to keep your stories restricted to what we are covering and/or what we have covered. However, your story needs to relate to the region of the world we are studying.

Submission Requirements
Name (first and last)
due date
class period
Skip two lines

Source of News Article/Story
Title of News Article/Story
Author of News Article/Story (if print, or who reported the story)
Date of publication of News Article/Story
News Article/Story #______

Skip two lines

Write the standard AND the element that your article/story connects to.

Skip two lines, and being your paragraph. Double space your paragraphs.

Each submission counts as a homework grade.
This assignment must be typed.
Due dates have been given, so plan accordingly. Unless there is a major emergency, news articles are due on the assigned date.

Due dates: Submissions are due on the following dates. If you know you will be absent, please turn your submission in the day before your absence.
1st quarter: 5 submissions
Due dates: Friday, August 18; Friday, August 25; Friday, September 8; Friday, September 15; Friday, September 22

2nd quarter: 5 submissions
Due dates: Friday, October 13; Friday, October 20; Friday, November 3; Friday, November 10; Friday, November 17; Friday, December 1

3rd quarter: 5 submissions
Due dates: Friday, January 19; Friday, January 26; Friday, February 9; Friday, February 16; Friday, March 2

4th quarter: 5 submissions
Due dates: Friday, March 30; Friday, April 13; Friday, April 27; Friday, May 4; Friday, May 11