What Happened on the Day You Were Born?

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What Happened on the Day You Were Born?

• Ms. A. Martin, M.ED.

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Research Topics
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Research Areas

1. Find the meaning of your first and last names and
   describe your birth statistics (most recent
   statistics available on the year and or date of
   your birth).
2. Find at least five news worthy events that
   occurred on your birth date.
3. List five famous people (politicians,
   entertainers, sports figures, etc) who share your
   birthday. Choose two of those people and list ten
   "noteworthy" facts about him/her.

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Research Areas

• Describe a famous first fact that occurred on or
  near your birthday.
• Give five sports facts about the year you were
  born. Choose one sports personality, event or
  individual sport from that year to focus on.
• Find the titles of five movies, television
  shows, and songs that were popular during the
  year you were born.
• Find at least ten other different facts about the
  day and/or year you were born. For example Who
  was president? What was the weather like the day
  you were born? What were your birth statistics?

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Newspaper

• Create a newspaper that includes the information
  you have researched.

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NEWSPAPER OVERVIEW

• Your newspaper will have several features
• Front Page
• Local News Section
• World News
• Editorial Section (This can discuss your
  morals/values and what others may say about
  you-include good and bad)
• Cartoon section
• The newspaper must be colorful and show your
  creativity in design and the presenting of
  information.

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Step One The Newspaper Title

• It is your job to think of a creative, catchy and
  appropriate title for your newspaper.
• Once you have decided on the name, you will want
  to put the name in using a feature of Word called
  WordArt. This feature will twist and stretch your
  text in special ways. To do this, follow these
  steps a. Insert, b. Picture, c. WordArt, d.
  Choose one of the choices available, e. Type in
  the name, f. Click OK, g. Drag title to desired
  location. 
• You should also include the date and other
  appropriate information in the title area of a
  newspaper.

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FRONT PAGE

• Here you will focus on the two main stories.
• Your main stories will basically be an overview
  of your topic.
• Each article must be two to three paragraphs
  (column format) in length and must be in your own
  words.
• Newspaper articles generally give the five Ws in
  the first paragraph and then that information is
  explained in more detail in subsequent paragraphs
  (inverted pyramid). You will also need a picture
  to use with your main story.
• Each story must have a heading, a picture, the
  name of the writer and a headshot to go along
  with it.

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INVERTED PYRMAID

• Journalist put the most important news at the
  beginning and then include the less important
  details as they write.
• These skillful writers try to put the who, what,
  when, where, why, and how (5 W's and H) at the
  beginning. They call this part the "lead." Then
  they add the rest of the details in the order of
  their importance. The least important information
  they put at the end.

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EXAMPLE
Tallahassee - A Tangelo County fourth-grader won
this year's annual Florida State Spelling Bee
yesterday when he spelled the word paraphernalia
correctly. He is the youngest student to win the
contest in its 50-year history. For his effort,
Larry Johnson, a ten year-old honor student as
Lemonline Elementary School, was awarded a 1,000
U.S. savings bond. In addition, he will receive
an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. to
represent the state of Florida in the National
Spelling Bee, to be held in October. Runner-up
in the contest was Tabitha Waters, an
eighth-grader at Grapefruit Middle School in
Baywater. Tabitha was eliminated when she
misspelled ennui. She received a 500 U.S.
savings bond. The winner of the National
Spelling Bee will be awarded a 20,000 college
scholarship to attend a college or university of
his or her choice after completing high
school. Students from 38 Florida counties took
part in the three-day contest. Following the
event, all 38 contestants were invited to dine at
the Governor's Mansion. Larry is the son of
Farley and Beth Johnson of Newtown. He has a
sister, Linsey, who is an eighth-grade student at
Newton Middle School, and a brother, Bruce, who
is a first-grader at Lemonlime.
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Local/World News Section

• This section will focus on the local situation on
  the day you were born.
• The local section will span two pages and have
  four articles that are three to four paragraphs
  in length (column format).
• Each story must have a heading, a picture.

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Cinema and Art Section

• In this section you will focus on the cinema and
  art on the day you were born.
• The local section will span a page and have two
  articles that are three to four paragraphs in
  length (column format).
• Must have a picture and a heading.

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Sport Section

• In this section you will focus on the sports and
  teams that were popular on the day you were born.
• The local section will span a page and have two
  articles that are three to four paragraphs in
  length (column format).
• Must have a picture and a heading.

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Cartoon

• You have a choice, you can create an original
  cartoon or you can choose a pre-existing cartoon
  that deals with your particular topic.
• Underneath the cartoon, you must explain how the
  cartoon relates to your specific topic. (1
  paragraph)

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Newspaper RubricMUST BE PRINTED AND ATTACHED AS
THE LAST PAGE.
Group Name ____________________________
CATEGORY 4 3 2 1
Knowledge Gained All students in the group can accurately answer all questions related to a) stories in the newspaper and b) technical processes used to create the newspaper. All students in the group can accurately answer most questions related to a) stories in the newspaper and b) technical processes used to create the newspaper. Most students in the group can accurately answer most questions related to a) stories in the newspaper and b) technical processes used to create the newspaper. Several students in the group appear to have little knowledge about the facts and the technical processes used for the newspaper.
Spelling and Proofreading No spelling or grammar errors remain after one or more people (in addition to the typist) read and correct the newspaper. No more than a couple of spelling or grammar errors remain after one or more people (in addition to the typist) read and correct the newspaper. No more than 3 spelling or grammar errors remain after one or more people (in addition to the typist) read and correct the newspaper. Several spelling or grammar errors remain in the final copy of the newspaper.
Articles - Purpose 90-100 of the articles establish a clear paragraph and demonstrate a clear understanding of the topic. (Use of inverted pyramid) 85-89 of the articles establish a clear paragraph and demonstrate a clear understanding of the topic. (Use of inverted pyramid) 75-84 of the articles establish a clear paragraph and demonstrate a clear understanding of the topic. Less than 75 of the articles establish a clear paragraph and demonstrate a clear understanding of the topic.
Articles - Supporting Details The details in the articles are clear, effective, and vivid 90-100 of the time. The details in the articles are clear and pertinent 80-89 of the time. The details in the articles are clear and pertinent 70-80 of the time. The details in the article are neither clear nor pertinent.
Graphics Graphics are in focus, are well-cropped and are clearly related to the articles they accompany. Graphics are in focus and are clearly related to the articles they accompany. 80-100 of the graphics are clearly related to the articles they accompany. More than 20 of the graphics are not clearly related to the articles OR no graphics were used.
Requirements All of the required content was present. Almost all the required content was present. At least 75 of the required content was present. Less than 75 of the required content was present.
Articles - Interest The articles contain facts, figures, and/or word choices that make the articles exceptionally interesting to readers. The articles contain facts, figures, and/or word choices that make the articles interesting to readers. The article contains some facts or figures but is marginally interesting to read. The article does not contain facts or figures that might make it interesting to read.