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Activities for Week 1

READING: February is Black History Month. In the newspaper, find articles about African Americans. Read at least two of the articles. As you read, think about each author´s point of view and the purpose of the articles. Write this information in your journal.

WRITING: Valentine´s Day is here. At this time each year, the personal ads in the newspaper often contain poems to special friends. Find a style that you like and write your own poem in your journal. You may write the poem to your parents, your brother, your sister, your pet or a special friend.

MATH: Many advertisers use percentages in advertisements to sell their products. For example, a toothpaste ad may state that 96 percent of all dentists recommend their toothpaste. Look through the newspaper for ads that use percentages in this way. Why would stating a percentage help sell a product?

CAREER CONNECTION: Write to an art museum to discover what kinds of careers are available for artists. Find five examples of a graphic artist´s work in today´s newspaper. Clip them out and paste them in your journal.

Activities for Week 2

READING: Both George Washington and Abraham Lincoln were born in February. We celebrate their birthdays as Presidents´ Day. Read articles in the newspaper about these presidents and think about the main points in each article. Then explain the articles to your parents.

WRITING: One of Florida´s most endangered species is the manatee. Look through the newspaper to find articles about the manatee and the dangers they face on Florida´s waterways. In your journal, write a story that would help persuade everyone to protect the manatee.

MATH: Every four years, February has 29 days; we call this leap year. Someone born on Feb. 29 (leap day) will only have a birthday every four years. Look through the birthday section (probably the personal ads) and see if any birthdays are listed as Feb. 29. Then figure out how old someone would be if he or she had been born on Feb. 29, 1972? How many birthdays would he or she have had if only the actual birthday were considered?

CAREER CONNECTION: Contact NASA to get information about careers in astronomy or space exploration. Find an article, a picture or an ad in today´s newspaper that relates in some way to space technology.

Activities for Week 3

READING: Read a review in the newspaper of a movie you would like to see. Think about what the reviewer has written about the movie. Is the reviewer appealing to your emotions or your logic? Explain why you would or would not go to see the movie after reading the review.

WRITING: National Child Passenger Safety Awareness Week is Feb. 8-14. Read the newspaper to find out what you can do to be safe as you ride in an automobile. In your journal, write a creative story about what you learn and share it with your classmates.

MATH: Some parts of Florida can be quite cold in February. Using an outdoor thermometer, record the temperature in the morning and in the afternoon. As you read the newspaper each day, look at the high and low temperatures for the day and see how your readings compare with those in the paper. What is the average temperature for each day´s reading?

CAREER CONNECTION: E-mail the Department of Agriculture to learn about careers that involve growing plants or gardening. Then find out which courses at school would help you in these careers.

Activities for Week 4

READING: College basketball is now in full swing. Read your local sports pages to get information on your favorite team. Then go to the Internet and find an article on the same team. Did you get the same or different information from the two sources? List the differences in your journal.

WRITING: A groundhog known as Punxsutawney Phil lives in Pennsylvania. Each year in February he sticks his head out of his hole. If he sees his shadow, that means there will be six more weeks of winter. Read the newspaper to find out more about Phil. Then choose a Florida animal that can help predict the weather in Florida. Write a story about the predictions it makes and how it makes them.

MATH: As you read the newspaper, look for pictures of buildings that contain geometric shapes, such as triangles, pyramids, pentagons or ovals. Cut out or copy pictures of these buildings and keep a list of the geometric terms. Explain the terms to your classmates.

CAREER CONNECTION: Write to the theater or film department of a university and request informa-tion on the types of jobs available for people interested in show business. Check your school´s career center to find out more about these careers.

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