1. Hot Space Mysteries

When the Kepler Telescope was launched by America's NASA space agency last March, scientists hoped to make new discoveries in space. What the Kepler has found are a pair of mysteries that have scientists scratching their heads. The telescope has discovered two heavenly bodies circling stars that are too hot to be planets and too small to be stars themselves. The new objects aren't like any known space objects, and because they circle stars they are being called "hot companions." "The universe keeps making strange things stranger than we can think of in our imagination," said Jon Morse, a space scientist. As a class, talk about different ways scientists learn about space. Then find a story about a space mission in the newspaper or online. Write a short paragraph describing what the mission hopes to achieve.

Learning Standards: Engaging peers in constructive conversation about topics of interest or importance; explaining how we learn about the universe; explaining how scientists decide what constitutes scientific knowledge.

2. NFL Playoffs

The NFL Playoffs are heating up as teams compete for the right to play in Super Bowl XLIV on February 7. Football experts use many tables, charts and graphs to keep track of how teams are doing, and which teams might make it to the Super Bowl each year. Using information you find in the newspaper, create a simple bar graph that compares the scores of two or more football teams that played in the NFL playoffs last weekend.

Learning Standard: Organizing data using concrete objects, pictures, tallies, tables, charts, diagrams and graphs.

3. One Old Fish

The largest freshwater fish in North America is a toothless beast that has been living in a river in the state of Montana generations after generation since the time of the dinosaurs. But the Kootenai River white sturgeon is now threatened with extinction unless wildlife officials can figure out a way to get it to spawn and reproduce in the wild. The construction of a dam on the river in 1974 upset the natural flow of water and limited the sturgeon's spawning efforts. As a result, the number of sturgeon in the Kootenai has dropped from more than 10,000 to fewer than 500. As a class, talk about the ways human actions can affect wildlife. Then find a story or photo of a wild animal in the newspaper. Write out things that could cause problems for the animal in the wild.

Learning Standards: Explaining ecosystem concepts and processes; describing positive and negative effects of humans on nature and wildlife; acquiring information from multiple sources.

4. Serena's Star Power

Serena Williams had a great year in women's tennis in 2009, and now she has been voted the best female athlete in all of sports. Williams was the runaway winner for Female Athlete of the Year in voting of sports editors at newspapers across the country. The Associated Press honor came after William finished the year ranked Number 1 in women's tennis, earned $6.5 million in prize money, won three top singles titles and paired with her sister Venus to win three doubles championships. As a class, read a newspaper story about a top women's athlete or team. List what you think are the most important points in the story. Then design a poster using those points.

Learning Standards: Engaging peers in constructive conversation about topics of interest or importance; locating and describing the cultures of communities; appreciating the diversity of cultures; representing creatively.

5. MLK

Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929. He used his intelligence, strength and character to lead African Americans in a fight for civil rights and for equality for all races. As a class, read about another great person in today's newspaper. Then create a list on the chalkboard of talents, skills and personal qualities that have made this person great.

Learning Standard: Identifying and explaining how individuals in history demonstrated good character and personal virtue.