1. Hot Hot Hot

It's been such a hot summer that newspapers have been offering advice on how to keep cool. Find a picture of a person who is being affected by the weather in today's newspaper. Now help that person out by redrawing her/him, this time with objects or clothing that can help her/him keep cool/warm/dry. Write a poem, rap or rhyme explaining ways to beat the heat in summer.

Learning Standards Using the craft of the illustrator to convey ideas artistically; acquiring information from visual, written and electronic sources.

2. Recycled Island

What do you do with 97 million pounds of recycled plastic? Build an island in the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and San Francisco, California, of course. WHIM, an architecture company based in the European country of the Netherlands, plans to build a floating island that will be fully "sustainable," meaning it can survive on its own, use few natural resources and have little long-term effect on the environment. The island would have enough room for half a million people to live, according to the plans, and it would be powered by wave and solar energy. Residents would be able to use seaweed as a biofuel (an alternative to oil) and also as fertilizer. Search the newspaper to find an article about ways people are doing something good for the planet, such as planting trees or recycling cans. Make a list of things you and your family do or could do to help the environment. Draw a picture of your efforts.

Learning Standards: Explaining how humans modify the environment and describing some of the possible consequences of those modifications; representing creatively.

3. Super Look

After 69 years, the comic book superhero Wonder Woman is getting a new look. The new writer of the DC Comics series, J. Michael Straczynski, told The New York Times he wanted to "toughen her up and giver her a modern sensibility" and look. So Wonder Woman's star-covered short-shorts and red, knee-length boots are being traded for a studded denim jacket, leggings and boots with spurs. Clip and save a comic strip from the newspaper that you think could use a personality makeover. List things you'd change about a character to make him or her more modern, and also a nicer person or better friend. Rewrite a conversation in the strip to show your changes.

Learning Standards: Considering the effects of an individual's actions on other people, how one acts in accordance with the rule of law and how one acts in a virtuous and ethically responsible way as a member of society; using the craft of the illustrator to express ideas artistically.

4. Breakfast of Champions

Kids who eat cereal in the morning tend to have healthy diets, according to a recent study. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey compared children who ate cereal for breakfast, those who ate "other" breakfasts and those who skipped breakfast. Researchers found that cereal-eaters usually did not eat more than the daily recommended amount of sugar. Kids who skipped breakfast ate more sugar, less fiber and fewer nutrients than breakfast eaters and, on average, had larger waists than those who ate breakfast in the morning. With family members, search the articles and ads in the newspaper to find three good choices and three bad choices for breakfast. Discuss or write out what makes each a good or bad choice.

Learning Standards: Analyzing how purchasers obtain information about goods and services from advertising and other sources.

5. Sports Stars

Serena and Venus Williams have made news recently for their wonderful tennis accomplishments. Look in the sports section of today's newspaper to find out about other great athletes and teams.

Learning Standard: Gathering information from multiple sources, including newspapers.

1. What team is leading baseball's American League Central Division?

2. Name a team that won a game yesterday in any sport.

3. Name a person who plays golf whose name is in the sports section.

4. Who is in the picture closest to the top of the front page of the sports section?

5. Name a National Basketball Association player who signed with a new team this summer.

Name the state where the player's new team plays home games.