This Issue Online. in this issue n News Shorts:... 2 n News Special: Is Corn Making Us Fat?...4

Transcription

1 February 8, 2010 Vol. 112, No. 11 ISSN TEACHER S EDITION Issue Dates Sept 7 Sept 21 Oct 5 Oct 19 & 26 Nov 9 Nov 23 Dec 7 Bringing the World to Your Classroom Jan 4 Jan 18 Feb 8 A supplement to Junior Scholastic Mar 1 Mar 22 Apr 12 Apr 26 May 10 in this issue n News Shorts:... 2 n News Special: Is Corn Making Us Fat?...4 n News Debate:... 6 n Hot Topic: World: Inside Afghanistan...8 n MapSearch: Afghanistan n American History Play: Sitting In for Freedom n Making Connections: Teens Lead the Way n Mapman s Corner: Find Mapman Contest n GeoSkills: Tracking H1N n What Do You Know? TEACHER S EDITION n Cover Story: Inside Afghanistan... T-2 n Other Features... T-3 n Answer Key... T-4 n Quiz Wizard... T-5 n Puzzles Reproducible...T-6 n Skills Reproducible...T-7 n Teacher to Teacher...T-8 Dear Teacher, In this issue, you ll find a fresh new design that we hope will appeal to you and your students alike. Our cover story, Inside Afghanistan, features an excerpt from Greg Mortenson s new book, Stones Into Schools (see p. 8). His moving account of the hunger to learn among young Afghans will help your students understand the huge challenges facing that impoverished country. Mortenson s efforts to build schools in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan, first chronicled in his best-selling book, Three Cups of Tea, are highlighted in the map on pp In our expanded news section, you ll find an article about the dangers of corn and corn by-products in our foods, as well as a debate that is timely for the 21st century: Do kids still need to know how to write and read cursive? Enjoy the issue! in our next issue: march 1, 2010 Haiti: After the Earthquake Body Scans in Airports? The Heroic Life of Helen Keller Surf Culture in Tahiti This Issue Online Suzanne McCabe, Editor smccabe@scholastic.com scholastic.com/juniorscholastic REPRODUCIBLES FOR YOUR WHITEBOARD! Extend your classroom lessons online! Go to our Web site for online skills reproducibles that can be used with your interactive whiteboard. To find a reproducible about life in Afghanistan, go to scholastic.com/juniorscholastic and click on This issue s reproducibles. Teacher s Edition Writer: Kathy Wilmore Teacher s Edition editor: Bryan Brown contributing writers: Lisa Arce, Karen Kellaher Teacher s Edition Production Editor: Kathleen Fallon Editorial address: Junior Scholastic, 557 Broadway, New York, NY or junior@ scholastic.com Customer-service inquiries: SCHOLASTIC ( ) or Junior Scholastic aep EdPress Winner WINNER DISTINGUISHED ACHIEVEMENT

2 COVER STORY: Inside Afghanistan (pp. 8-13) NCSS standard Global connections This feature provides key information about Afghanistan and an inspiring excerpt from the new book by Greg Mortenson, co-author of the best-seller Three Cups of Tea. n Objectives Examine where Afghanistan is, how its people live, and why the U.S. is at war there. Realize how much some children will endure to get an education. Consider how the efforts of one person can help many. n The Basics Afghanistan is Asia s poorest country and one of the poorest in the world. Its per capita GDP is $800. (Compare the GDP of Asia s next-poorest country, Myanmar: $1,100.) The terrain is mostly dry and mountainous. Overgrazing, drought, and desertification are serious problems. Afghanistan is landlocked. Imports and exports must travel overland, which is difficult given the mountains, or by air. Afghanistan has a relatively young population: The median age is 17.6 years for males and females alike. Few are educated: Afghans school-life expectancy the average number of years they are likely to attend school is 11 years for boys and only 4 years for girls. n Word s Worth The suffix -stan, or -istan, in some Asian country names means land of or home of. The prefix is usually the name of an ethnic group. Afghanistan means Land of the Afghans. The rule applies to all but one of the other country names with that suffix. The exception is Pakistan, which means Land of the Pure. (Pak is Urdu for pure.) Can you name the five other countries with names formed like Afghanistan s? (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan) n Content-Area Questions culture/social studies 1. All but 1 percent of Afghanistan s people practice which religion? (Islam) 2. The harder something is to come by, the more precious it is likely to seem. Does that apply to education for the kids Mortenson describes? Explain. How does your attitude toward school compare? (Answers will vary.) g e o g r a p h y 1. How does Afghanistan s terrain affect its people s livelihood? (The dry, mountainous terrain limits where people can live as well as their ability to make a living or even feed themselves by raising crops or livestock.) 2. K2, the mountain that Mortenson tried to climb, is part of which mountain range? (Karakoram) language arts 1. What does mullah signify? (It is a title of respect for an Islamic community leader.) 2. What do the events in A Saga of Struggle (p. 12) say about Afghanistan? (Over its history, Afghanistan has been invaded by powerful countries or empires that failed to win control of it.) Renew Junior Scholastic now for just $8.25* per student and avoid any price increases next year. There is no risk or obligation, so reserve your magazines today! FREE Desk Caddy with orders of 20 or more subscriptions To order call SCHOLASTIC ( ) Mon. Fri. 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sat. 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST Please mention code 8223 when ordering. *Price valid through 3/31/ REN-S10G3 T-2 February 8, 2010 Teacher s Edition JUNIOR SCHOLASTIC

3 American History Play: Sitting In for Freedom (pp ) NCSS standard Civic ideals & practices This play commemorates the 50th anniversary of a historic protest that began on February 1, 1960, in Greensboro, North Carolina. n Objectives Get a sense of how severely racism restricted the lives of, and opportunities for, African-Americans just a few generations ago. Understand the action the Greensboro Four chose to take why it was successful, and how it might have turned out otherwise. Practice reading aloud. n Backstory African-Americans have always struggled toward freedom and equal opportunity, but not until the mid- 1950s did those efforts coalesce into a widespread action: the civil rights movement. Although a few famous leaders emerged most notably Martin Luther King Jr. it was, by and large, the courageous efforts of countless unknown and littleknown people that forged progress. Also key was the relatively young new media of that time: television. Widely televised images of young blacks peaceably resisting unfair treatment and sometimes violence by whites made an indelible impression on TV viewers nationwide and around the world, and spurred Congress to pass new laws protecting rights for all. n Rapid Review Why did the four students hold a sit-in at the lunch counter? (to protest the whites-only service policy) Why did that take courage? (Blacks demanding equal rights risked being fired, arrested, beaten, or killed.) WEB LINKS February One: The Greensboro Four: februaryonedocumentary.com /bio.htm International Civil Rights Center & Museum: sitinmovement.org Sit-ins, Freedom Rides: memory.loc.gov/ammem/aaohtml /exhibit/aopart9b.html GeoSkills: Tracking H1N1 (pp ) NCSS standard People, places, & environments Maps are valuable tools for showing the movement of people, forces, or things around the world one of the five themes of geography. n Objectives Help develop students mapreading and abstract-thinking skills by using a map in a way that may be new to them. Instill an appreciation for how far and fast the H1N1 virus spread. n Backstory The Spanish influenza of 1918 was an H1N1 virus. Much more severe than last year s swine flu, it killed more people than World War I, which was just ending. n Word s Worth The word pandemic comes from the Greek pan, meaning all, and demos, meaning people or all of the people. It refers to the widespread nature of a disease, not necessarily its severity. A pandemic affects more people than an epidemic epi for upon ( upon the people ) which is a sudden outbreak of a disease within a region or group. n Rapid Review Which continent was struck first by the swine flu? (North America) By what date had the virus spread to North Africa? (July 24, 2009) n Picturing Movement Encourage students to imagine what other kinds of movement can be shown by a map. Possible examples: the spread of religions, languages, or technology; the migration of people or animals. WEB LINKS The Five Themes: nationalgeographic.com/resources /ngo/education/themes.html Migrating Americans (interactive map): pewsocialtrends.org/maps /migration Movement Map The Spread of Islam: maps.com/ref_map.aspx?cid= 694,725,739,1027&pid=11393 JUNIOR SCHOLASTIC Teacher s Edition February 8, 2010 T-3

4 NAME: CROSSWORD PUZZLE Take our crossword challenge before reading this issue. Then come back and fill in any blanks. The starred clues refer to the article and map on pp ACROSS 1 Snake that killed Cleopatra 4 Honest : Lincoln s nickname *7 Mortenson s first book was Three of Tea. *9 Afghanistan s continent 10 Suffix meaning made of, as in wood *11 A growing number of Americans want U.S. troops of Afghanistan. 13 Physician s title (abbr.) *14 The U.S. has been trying to capture Osama Laden. 15 You + me *16 ruling group forced from power by the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan. 18 Suffix showing past tense, as in want 19 Belonging to us 20 Tree cutter s hand-tool 21 Response to a question (abbr.) *22 Kabul is of Mazar-e Sharif (compass abbr.). *24 The teachers Mortenson met had not been in more than two years. *26 Afghanistan s President is the of government. Sudoku 28 Big, bigger, bigg *29 river in northern Afghanistan: Darya DOWN 1 Best on a team, such as a pitcher or pilot 2 It rises in the east and sets in the west. 3 Abbreviation for pages 4 Good gold 5 U.S. Vice President: Joe 6 You hear with this. *8 Most in Afghanistan is too dry for growing. 9 A baseball player s turn to hit: bat Do you sudoku? This addictive puzzle from Japan has become hugely popular in the U.S. If you aren t already a fan, here s how to play: The puzzle grid is divided into 9 large squares, each of which is divided into 9 small squares. Each row and each column also has 9 squares. Your goal is to write a number from 1 to 9 in each square. Each digit can be used only once per row, column, and square. T-6 February 8, 2010 Teacher s Edition JUNIOR SCHOLASTIC 1 puzzles reproducible Puzzle by kathy wilmore Puzzle solution is in your Teacher s Edition. *12 The Soviet occupied Afghanistan for a decade. 14 Not good *15 The U.S. has been at in Afghanistan since *16 Afghanistan is slightly smaller than the state of. 17 U.S. President before Obama 20 Large, tailless monkey 21 Printed version of a commercial 22 Symbol of the United States: Uncle 23 Last part of a school s Web address 25 Pronoun for a thing 27 Apiece (abbr.) This grid is from Sudoku: 100 Fun Number Puzzles, compiled by Kjartan Poskitt and Michael Mepham (Scholastic, 2005). Uses: copy machine, opaque projector, or transparency master for overhead projector. Scholastic Inc. grants teacher-subscribers to Junior Scholastic permission to reproduce this Skills Reproducible for use in their classrooms. Copyright 2010 by Scholastic Inc. All rights reserved.

5 NAME: skills reproducible Uses: copy machine, opaque projector, or transparency master for overhead projector. Scholastic Inc. grants teacher-subscribers to Junior Scholastic permission to reproduce this Skills Reproducible for use in their classrooms. Copyright 2010 by Scholastic Inc. All rights reserved. During the 1950s and 1960s, people across the U.S. struggled to end years of segregation and inequality for African-Americans through peaceful protest. Inspired by Martin Luther King Jr. and other leaders, questions using a chronology The Civil Rights Movement Chronology 1954: In a landmark case, Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, the U.S. Supreme Court rules that segregation (separation by race) in public schools is unconstitutional. This brings an end to the practice known as separate but equal, in which all-white schools were superior to the illequipped schools blacks had to attend. 1960: Four college students in Greensboro, North Carolina, stage a sit-in demonstration at a department-store lunch counter to protest a whites-only service policy. This sit-in inspires many other such events, which use nonviolent means to oppose discrimination. 1965: In Selma, Alabama, police use clubs, tear gas, water cannons, and dogs to stop marchers from protesting efforts to keep blacks from voting. Broadcast on national TV, the attack shocks the nation. Six months later, the Voting Rights Act is signed into law, ensuring adult U.S. citizens, including minorities, the right to vote. 1. What Supreme Court decision ruled that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional? 2. When did Martin Luther King Jr. deliver his I Have a Dream speech? 3. Who signed the Civil Rights Act into law? 4. Where did federal troops escort nine black stu dents to school? 5. How long after the protests in Selma, Alabama, was the Voting Rights Act signed into law? this campaign to outlaw racial discrimination became known as the civil rights movement. The following chronology lists a number of key events in the struggle for equality. Study it, then answer the questions below. 1955: African-Americans in Montgomery, Alabama, boycott city buses to support Rosa Parks, who was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man. The boycott, which lasts a little over a year, sparks an end to segregation on buses in the city. 1963: Martin Luther King Jr. addresses 250,000 Americans from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. King s I Have a Dream speech is the highlight of this March on Washington, and helps strengthen and unify the civil rights movement. 1967: Thurgood Marshall, a lawyer known for his role in the Brown v. Board of Education case and other efforts against segregation, is sworn in as the first African-American Supreme Court Justice. Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper. 1957: President Dwight D. Eisenhower orders federal troops to escort nine black students safely to school at Central High in Little Rock, Arkansas. The troops force the school to obey the law and admit black students. 1964: President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act. The new law bans discrimination based on race, color, religion, or national origin and calls for equal opportunity in education and employment. 1968: Martin Luther King Jr. plans and organizes a march to call attention to the problems of poor people across the U.S. But before he can begin the march, he is shot and killed by a gunman in Memphis, Tennessee. 6. What incident sparked the Montgomery bus boy cott? 7. Who was the first African-American Supreme Court Justice? 8. Where and when did students stage a sit-in at a de partment-store lunch counter? 9. approximately how many people attended the March on Washington? 10. What kinds of freedoms did the 1964 Civil Rights Act ensure people in the U.S.? JUNIOR SCHOLASTIC Teacher s Edition February 8, 2010 T-7

6 Persuasive Writing Create a News Blog teacher TO TEACHER This edition of Junior Scholastic raises compelling questions about topics in the news. Use the lesson below to give students a voice! By sharing opinions on a classroom blog, students will hone persuasive writing skills and get authentic publishing experience. This lesson plan was inspired by Jill Incalcaterra, instructional technology facilitator for Frelinghuysen Township (NJ) School, and written by Karen Kellaher, a former Scholastic editor. OBJECTIVES Students will: write and edit a persuasive essay on a topic in the news. publish essays on a private classroom blog. practice netiquette as they respond to peers blog entries. PREPARE Check your school s Acceptable Use Policy for guidelines on creating a blog. You may need to get parental consent. Explain that you will be creating a private, password- protected blog accessible only to you, your students, and their parents. ENGAGE Ask students to brainstorm what blog is short for (Web log) and discuss blogs that they have seen. Point out that many blogs are examples of persuasive writing material that is meant to get a reader to think or act in a certain way. For example, a blogger might write to encourage people to help the environment. Explain that in this lesson, students will blog to share their opinions on issues in the news. Write and Edit 1. Have students choose one of the following topics, then read the corresponding Junior Scholastic article. Are corn and corn syrup to blame for America s alarming weight problem? (pp. 4-5) Should schools still teach cursive writing? (pp. 6-7) Should the U.S. help improve education in Afghanistan? (pp. 8-11) 2. Encourage students to draft a persuasive essay that tackles the question they selected. Remind students that a good persuasive writer grabs the reader s attention, clearly states his or her opinion, gives at least two or three strong arguments, cites details and examples to support those arguments, and ends by recapping his or her opinion. 3. Have students edit and proofread their essays. Publish Choose a site for posting students blogs. Several sites offer free or in expensive private classroom blogs. This lesson uses the site kidblog.org, which is free and easy to navigate. 1. Log on to kidblog.org to set up your space. First, click on Create a class and set up a user name and password for yourself. Enter a name for your class, then click Add. Your blog page will appear on-screen. 2. Go to Class settings and select your privacy preferences. It is a good idea to restrict your blog to class members and to require that the blog administrator (yourself) approve all posts and comments. Save your settings changes. 3. Add your class list. Go to Students/users and enter students first names. (Note that the site may add a number to the end of a student s name to create a unique user name.) Assign a different, easy-toremember password to each student and make a record of all user names and passwords. 4. Get started! Have students log on with their user names and passwords. Have them click on Write new post, then type in their essays. If they run out of time, they can click Save and log on later to complete the essay. When they finish, have them click Submit for review. 5. Post students work once you have reviewed it. Then encourage students to read and respond to at least two of their classmates blogs. They may ask questions, comment on an interesting point, or even politely disagree. Remind students to keep their comments constructive and respectful. Just in case, review all comments before posting them. T-8 February 8, 2010 Teacher s Edition JUNIOR SCHOLASTIC