This morning workshop held at the Guardian news-room in Farringdon, London demonstrated to teachers how the effective use of newspapers in the class-room can improve standards in reading and writing. Britain is 9th in the world league table of newspaper readership and a close correlation exists between the literacy of a nation and its readershipof newspapers.
George Kelly of Creative Media Concepts underlined the importance of 'getting kids reading' and sharpening up their awarenness of the world around them.
He suggested 4 activities for teachers to use with immediate effect:
- Show a picture and come up with a headline
- Find 3 successful people featured in the paper and explain why you think they are successful.
- From the people mentioned in the paper, find two who you'd like to invite to your party. Would they get on?
- Find somewhere in the paper where you'd rather be- explain why.
The Guardian showed how their Learn News Desk site can support pupils' learning. Greenacres Primary school used a controversial article on teenage pregnancy to stimulate debate and encourage an empathetic repsonse from pupils.
The ballot box feature on the site also engages pupils interactively in the news.
For more information, see the Guardian Newsroom site.