Teachers, all through the year, have incredible demandson their time.  One of theirbiggest challenges during the year is state testing and other end-of-the yeartests.

This spring, teachers are teaching lessons, reviewingunits and preparing for these tests feared by many students and parents.  The Newport Plain Talk Newspapers InEducation program can be a valuable resource during the preparation time fortesting.  Newspapers are not justfor "free reading" in the classroom and between tests.

The Newport Plain Talk Newspapers In Education programoffers NIE activities that teachers can use to review the core subjects.  Many newspaper activities can be quickand student-directed.  Teachers andparents can access numerous NIE curriculum materials from The Newport PlainTalk NIE Web site at nie.newportplaintalk.com (click "teachers").

So much of today's testing deals with students' abilityto critically think about a situation. The Newport Plain Talk is packed with current events that deal withissues in the community, state, nation and the world. 

Teachers can incorporate current events by givingstudents time to choose an article from the newspaper to discuss.  Teachers can open the floor to discussionsand debate about the article.  Tocritically discuss real-life situations is a great way to exercise a student'smind.  Newspaper editorials andpolitical or editorial cartoons can also improve critical thinking skills.

Students can write their own editorials or create theirown political or editorial cartoons.

Many children, as well as adults, "freeze" whenit comes to taking tests.

As with anything else - practice makes perfect.  Again, the newspaper can be used byhaving the students take timed tests by reading articles and answeringquestions in a set amount of time. Teachers can use the questions "Who, What, Where, When, Why andHow" for these timed practice tests.

Newspaper articles can also be used to teach "causeand effect".  Students canread the article and then list the "cause" and "effect" forthe main topic of the article.  Thecomics are an excellent resource for teaching sequencing skills and othercommunications skills.

Students learn best when they are motivated and thetopics they are studying are interesting and relevant to their lives.  Using newspapers in the classroomsprovide some of the best and timely resources.

The benefits of The Newport Plain Talk NIE program goesfar beyond providing a supplemental resource for teachers, parents, andstudents.

Studies from the University of Minnesota and theNewspaper Association of America Foundation have shown that students whoconsistently utilize newspapers in the classroom score significantly higher onstandardized tests and develop stronger thinking skills.

The Newport Plain Talk newspaper should not be overlookedor eliminated as teachers prepare students for testing.  Newspapers should be a part of everystudent's life.  Newspapers inform,educate, and, on occasion infuriate us. They offer perspectives  andchallenge readers to form an opinion. They are simply a part of who we are and where we live.

The Newport Plain Talk NIE program encourages our localteachers and parents to incorporate their community newspaper - a "livingtextbook" in the classroom and at home on a daily basis.

The Newport Plain Talk NIE program is a non-profitliteracy program for the community. For more ideas on how to utilize The Newport Plain Talk as teaching toolor for more information about The Newport Plain Talk Newspapers In Educationprogram contact Lu Shep Baldwin at 423-506-5980 orlushep.baldwin@jonesmedia.biz.

Lu Shep Baldwin is Director of Educational Services forJones Media, Inc. (parent company of The Newport Plain Talk)