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April 18, 2018 : Our First Words

The Mini Page is a syndicated, four-page tabloid written for young children found each Wednesday in The Denver Post. This issue of The Mini Page is available through the eEdition Archive to registered eEdition subscribers

Click here to download the PDF for this lesson

Activities:

1. Write the word “WIN” at the top of a piece of paper. Now look in the sports section of the newspaper. Find all the words that are used for “win.” Paste the newspaper words on your sheet , or write the words on the paper.

2. Look at the comics section of your newspaper. Circle any word that is slang or refers to modern technology.

3. Select three unfamiliar words from news stories in your newspaper. Write the words down. Look up the meanings of the words from an app on your smartphone, tablet or computer and write the definition. Now look up the meaning in a printed dictionary. Write the definition. How are the definitions the same? How are they different? Which dictionary gives you more information?

4. How are these important to dictionaries: (a) Blue - backed speller, (b) Noah Webster, (c) Latin and French, and (d) lexicographer ?

5. With friends, pick five words each from the news, entertainment, sports and business sections of the newspaper. Write each word on a card. Shuffle the cards and distribute them among friends. Each person looks up his/her words in a dictionary and looks for the language of origin. When you are finished, make a list of all the different languages you found. Which language appeared the most?

Mini Page activities meet many state and national educational standards. Each week we identify standards that relate to The Mini Page content and offer activities that will help your students reach them.

This week's standard:
Students use knowledge of word identification strategies to comprehend texts. (Language Arts)

(standards by Dr. Sherrye D. Garrett, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi)

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