Current Events

Find out what Current Events are happening this week from IST Grade 2…

What is a Current Event? A Current Event is something that is happening somewhere in the world NOW! Current Events are news stories that include a title, author, and date of publication. Grade 2 students are doing more than just looking up information, they are asking, “What is happening in our world TODAY?”

Each week two students choose an article to present from newspapers, magazines and Internet sites. Students read the article and then use our Current Events Note Taking Form to answer questions like Who, What, When, Where and Why. Students include their opinion about the article and then present their information to the rest of the class.

This week Said shared with us an article titled Portsmouth Into FA Cup Final from CBBC – Newsround online.

Said explained to the class that he LOVES football. We as a class discovered the following about the FA Cup from Wikipedia.com:

“The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football, run by and named after The Football Association. The name “FA Cup” usually refers to the English men’s tournament, although a women’s tournament is also held. The FA Cup was first held in 1871–72, and is the oldest association football competition in the world.”

Said reported, “Portsmouth is a football team in England. This football team sometimes loses when playing against other teams. However, they have made it to the finals even though the Portsmouth club is losing money.” Said continued by stating, “My opinion is that Portsmouth should not give up because of money when they are in a match.”

__________

Aliyah shared with the class a popular article titled, Volcano Eruption in South Iceland from BBC News online.

Aliyah started her presentation by explaining, “A volcano in Iceland erupted causing a lot of different effects to the environment and people of Iceland and the whole world!”

Aliyah created posters and a slide presentation to explain her news article and to teach us more about volcanoes; how and why they erupt.

She concluded her presentation by saying, “About 500 people were moved away from their homes, to keep protected. All flights were stopped and roads were closed. Ash from the volcano has reached as far as all over Europe, which is why flights are canceled. People are stranded in different countries and can not fly home! Volcanic ash has endangered animals and farmers too because the smoke and dust from the ash can be poisonous and affect plants and food.”

For more information about Volcanoes:
Weather Wiz Kids – Lots of interesting information about volcanoes
Discovery Kids Volcano Explorer – Learn about volcanoes and what happened in Pompeii
National Geographic: Quiz Your Noodle – See what you know about volcanoes
Scholastic Volcano Lab – Test your volcano knowledge
Natural History Museum – Answer questions to build a volcano

__________

Thank you Said and Aliyah for presenting your articles to the class. Both students answered questions and accepted constructive feedback from their audience at the conclusion of their presentation.