1. Blizzard on Saturn

People who live in northern states are all too familiar with the wind and snows of blizzards. Now scientists for America's NASA space agency are getting a look at a giant blizzard on the ringed planet Saturn. The storm is so big it can be seen by telescopes 750 million miles away on Earth. But NASA's Cassini spacecraft, which is orbiting Saturn, is sending back close-up pictures. The blizzard is five times as big as the biggest blizzard that hit Earth this year, NASA scientists say. It features a mix of snow and violent winds like blizzards on Earth, but the snow is different. It's made up of ice and the gas ammonia, which is common in Saturn's atmosphere. As a class, talk about different thing that scientists study in space. Then find stories about space missions in the newspaper or on the Internet. Read one together and write a summary of what is being studied and why the mission is important.

Learning Standards: Explaining how we learn about the universe; explaining how scientists decide what constitutes scientific knowledge; writing fluently for multiple purposes.

2. Picture Power

One of the cool things about newspapers is that they give you information in words AND pictures. Newspaper photographers work very hard to take pictures that tell stories all by themselves. Look through today's paper and find a picture of a person who interests you. Explain why you like the picture, and what you think the person is like, judging from the picture. Finish by giving the picture a creative title.

Learning Standard: Responding to the ideas and feelings generated by written and visual texts, and sharing with peers.

3. 'Green Exercise'

All over the world, people are looking for ways to "go green" and be nicer to the Earth. But did you know that if you "go green" with a little outdoor exercise, the Earth can be nice to you? A new study in the European country of Great Britain has found that as little as five minutes of outdoor "green exercise" a day can improve people's moods, mental health and self-esteem. Walking, gardening, bicycling and farming all are effective kinds of "green exercise," researchers at the University of Essex found, and they encouraged people of all ages to spend more time in parks, gardens and other green areas. "Green exercise" was especially helpful to children, the study found. As a class, talk about outdoor activities you like to do with your family or friends. Then find a picture of an outdoor scene in the newspaper that you would like to visit. Write a short poem or song about what you would like to do there, and how it would make you feel.

Learning Standards: Responding to a variety of oral, visual, written and electronic texts by making connections to students' personal lives and the lives of others; representing creatively.

4. Heavy Metal Dinosaurs Heavy metal rock music probably isn't the first thing that comes to mind when people think of children's music. But it's become wildly popular with kids in the European country of Finland, thanks to a music group of five long-haired dinosaurs. The group Hevisaurus has only been around since last September, but it already has a best selling CD album and is selling out live concerts. Most of its fans are just five to seven years old, but they rock out as much as older fans when Hevisaurus plays hard-core songs about homework, monsters and other kid-friendly topics. The idea for a band playing heavy metal music in dinosaur costumes was the brainstorm of drummer Mirka Rantanen, who had played in adult metal bands for years. He came up with the idea after attending a children's concert with his own kids and asked, "what if I started making music for kids?" As a class, talk about the kinds of music you like. Then come up with an idea for a band that would appeal to kids your age or younger. Design an ad for the newspaper announcing your new band, its name, and why kids would like its music.

Learning Standards: Engaging peers in conversations about topics of interest or importance; reading and writing with developing fluency, speaking confidently, listening and interacting appropriately, viewing strategically and representing creatively.

5. Prison Goats

As people look for ways to cut costs, goats are getting popular as lawn mowers. A prison in Connecticut has been using two of them for the last year and has saved hundreds of dollars on gas and manpower. The goats, which will eat almost anything that's green, take care of overgrown plants in hard-to-reach places like the fenceline area around the Corrigan-Radgowski Prison, officials say. The goats are named Nibbles and Bits, and "every day they eat their weight in weeds," the prison warden said. "Everyone loves the goats." As a class, talk about the different things animals can be trained to do to help people. Or talk about things animals do naturally that help people. Then draw a comic strip for the newspaper showing animals helping people. Give your comic a catchy, creative name.

Learning Standards: Acquiring information from multiple sources; engaging peers in conversations about issues of interest or importance; using the craft of the illustrator to convey ideas artistically.