Many world language teachers incorporate current events in the form of projects, presentations, or weekly assignments. We all have our typical routines with current events, but how will you make adjustments for this year? Here are some of my suggestions!
1. Write Your Own News Article / News Paper Virtually
Students can format their own news article or newspaper and write about topics of interest to them, things happening in your community, or major news (the upcoming election!?) If you want your students to have a template to follow, check out this one.
2. Small Group Conversations in Breakout Rooms
With Zoom or Google Meet, place your students in small groups. Assign each group a news article to read. They can read together, just like they would in class, create a summary, and report back to the group. Each group can record the main ideas (who, what, where, when, why, how) on Google Slides with images.
3. Podcast Project
Students can create their own podcast, and during each episode they can talk about the news. It could be what is happening in the world, a specific country, your community, or their house! Keep in mind your students’ levels. Novice level students could probably record a short podcast (even 1-2 minutes!) about a news broadcast they saw. Students should record a video or audio of their podcast and they can post on a Google Slides portfolio. Each slide will be a new episode; they post the video/audio, a short description, and accompanying photo. By the end of the year, they have a whole podcast!
4. Write Summaries of News Articles
This is a great interpretive & presentational combination. Students will read a news article, even lower proficiency level students can read articles on Newsela. Then, they rewrite it in their own words, using this template.
5. News Broadcast Video Project
My students are so technologically advanced when it comes to making videos that this could be such a creative final product. Students can input fun backgrounds so they look like they are reporting live from another country or city. They can talk about the weather, news, and more.
6. EdPuzzle – Listening Comprehension
Choose a clip of the news that your students will be able to understand. It helps if there are captions! Then create an EdPuzzle comprehension check with this video. I love using Edpuzzle because you can add questions and comments at any point in the video to assess your students’ interpretive skills.
In order to keep current events at the forefront of your class, be sure to make it part of your routine. It could be a weekly assignment, once a marking period, or with every unit. Also, make sure your students enjoy these projects. Give them choice in what they are reading or watching so they take a personal interest! Check out my other suggestions for current events in this blog post.
