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The newspapers delivered to my class are used on a daily basis for a variety of learning opportunities. Here are some methods used:

1. I teach U.S. History to over 200 8th graders per day. To celebrate historical anniversaries, the paper provides headlines, images and information for the visual learners to complement their note taking skills.

2. Current Events are discussed and immediately referred to when class begins, using headlines and info as above. Recently, the State of the Union address, Coretta Scott King, and updates on soldiers killed at war have been discussed and tested.

3. My class has a notebook assignment called "Above and Beyond" which requires the student to find, cut out, paste into and summarize a U.S. history-related article onto a specified page of their interactive notebook. When such an article is found, I review it for the class and encourage completion of the page. It is required for an "A" in my class.

4. At the beginning of each of the four 9 weeks during the school year, we have a notebook cover contest. As we study American History chronologically, each period is assigned certain years. For example, presently we are in the Civil War and Reconstruction time period. Students look forward to excellent cover designs and vote for the top of the class, in 6 different class periods. Winning entries are rewarded with their name mentioned in The News-Journal´s Neighbors section called School Daze and a pizza party quarterly during lunch. This is a highlight of the year for some students, who will remember that newspaper issue for a lifetime.

5. Finally, as a local historian who produces events and conducts tours around Volusia, and as Vice President of Sugar Mill Gardens at Dunlawton and also serving on the Board of Directors of the Volusia Anthropological Society, throughout the year, The News-Journal prints articles and announcements related to these events. Many of my students use these opportunities for extra credit as I continue to cultivate those seeds of history!

Joseph M. Vetter
U.S. History
David C. Hinson Middle

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