1. Panda Problem The Asian country of China has the most famous reserve in the world to protect pandas. But in the recent earthquake that hit China, the reserve was badly damaged and its leaders want to find a new home for the endangered black and white bears. In today's newspaper, find stories or photos involving wild animals. Pick two that interest you (don't forget sports mascots!). Write a sentence for each, telling what people could do to help or protect these animals. Learning Standards: Describing positive and negative effects of humans on nature, wildlife and the environment; responding to written, visual and electronic texts.

2. Healthy Goats Gruff Most every one knows the story of the "Three Billy Goats Gruff," in which three goats have to cross a bridge guarded by a troll. Now this fun and famous story has been rewritten by two authors to teach children that dark green vegetables are healthy choices to eat. In "The Three Goats Gruff Go to the Greener Side," a clever girl goat not only helps her billy goat brothers cross the bridge but she teaches them the value of eating vegetables, especially dark green ones. As a class, talk about how vegetables are healthy choices for meals and snacks. Then find examples in the food ads in the newspaper. Create a vegetable menu for five days of the week from the vegetables you find in the paper. For added fun, pick three vegetables you could eat as snacks. Learning Standards: Comprehending what constitutes good health and fitness; acquiring information from multiple sources and then evaluating, organizing and communicating it.

3. New Camp Concern

Summer's almost here and that means a lot of kids will be going off to summer camp. For years, sleep-away camps have had to deal with kids who miss their families so much they feel "homesickness." Now, according to the American Camp Association, there are parents who miss their kids so much they feel "kid-sickness" when their children are at camp. As a class, talk about what you would miss most about your families if you went away to a sleep-away summer camp for a week. Then talk about what you think your families would miss about you. Finish by drawing a comic strip for the newspaper showing you or your friends having fun at a summer camp.

Learning Standards: Engaging peers in constructive conversation about issues or topics of interest; using the craft of the illustrator to formulate and express ideas artistically.

4. Camp Activities

Summer camps now offer activities for any interest kids might have. Day camps and sleep-away camps specialize in everything from sports to computers to music to movies. Find an activity you like to do in today's newspaper. Pretend you are going to start a summer camp for people who like that activity. Write sentence or short paragraph to get students your age to attend your camp.

Learning Standards: Responding to a variety of written, visual and electronic texts by making connections to students' personal lives and the lives of others; writing fluently for multiple purposes.

5. Spell This Last week, some of the best student spellers in America faced off in the Scripps National Spelling Bee. A record 288 students participated in this year's contest - 32 times the number at the first bee in 1925. The Spelling Bee not only teaches students how to spell words, but it improves their vocabulary and teaches them the correct way to use English. With a partner, find five words you don't know in today's newspaper. Make flash cards for your words and write out their meaning. Then use your words in complete sentences. Learning Standard: Employing multiple strategies to decode words and construct meaning; identifying and using mechanics that enhance and clarify understanding, including conventional punctuation, capitalization and spelling.