1. Summer Wear

School's almost out for the summer. Hunt through today's newspaper and cut out pictures of clothes that would be appropriate for your favorite summertime activity. Paste the pictures down on a sheet of paper and draw a picture of yourself as if you were wearing the clothes.

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; investigating practical situations such as

scheduling, routing, sequencing, networking, organizing and classifying; acquiring information from multiple sources.

2. Flag Day

June 14 is Flag Day. Imagine you are going to design a flag for

yourself. Cut out pictures and words from today's newspaper that you

think represent you and things you like. Paste the pictures into an art

collage on a sheet of paper. If you have extra room, fill in the space

with colors that mean something to you. Use the form below to help you gather information and design your flag.

Learning Standard: Reading and writing with developing fluency, speaking confidently, listening and interacting appropriately, viewing

strategically and representing creatively.

Picture: Why you choose it to represent you:

Picture: Why you choose it to represent you:

Picture: Why you choose it to represent you:

Color: Why you choose it to represent you:

Color: Why you choose it to represent you:

Color: Why you choose it to represent you:

3. A Sticky Situation

When oil began gushing in the Gulf of Mexico in April, it affected the lives of many creatures that call water and shore areas home. Many animals and birds need long-term care and can't be released back into the wild. So the Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium in southwest Florida is taking them in. The group cares for a variety of animals, but thinks birds will face the greatest harm from the oil spill. Photos of injured animals can provoke many different emotions. Search the newspaper for photos about the Gulf oil spill or another problem involving wildlife or animals. As a class, talk about how pictures influence your emotions as you look at the photos and read the stories that go with them. Write a sentence describing how you feel when you look at one photo.

Learning Standards: Responding to a variety of written, visual and electronic texts; explaining ecosystem concepts and processes; describing positive and negative effects of humans on wildlife and the environment.

4. Tiny and Dangerous

Have you ever seen the batteries that look like buttons? They're small and disc-shaped and are extremely dangerous. New research shows that the rate of severe poisonings from U.S. kids swallowing batteries has risen over the past 25 years. The main culprits, especially in kids younger than 4, are the lithium "button" batteries used in cameras, remote controls, watches, hearing aids, toys, musical greeting cards and other products. Because battery poisoning can cause death, the researchers are calling on companies that make products to redesign battery holders so young children can't open them. In teams or alone, search the newspaper for ads for products that may use "button" batteries. Write a letter to the company making one product to warn about the dangers of these batteries and ask the company to make the product child-safe.

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; writing fluently for multiple purposes.

5. Gift of Friendship

This week 125 years ago the United States received a great gift of friendship from the European country of France. On June 17, 1885, the Statue of Liberty arrived in New York City's harbor. There are many ways to learn about people from other countries, or people from other countries who have moved to this country. As a class, search the newspaper to find an article or photo involving people from another country. On a sheet of paper, write out three things you learned about the other country from the photo or story. Then write out three extra things you would like to learn about the country.

Learning Standards: Locating and describing the cultures of communities; appreciating the diversity of cultures; writing fluently for multiple purposes.