NewsQuest

Quotes from Kids

August 29, 2002

Schoolblogs seems really fun and cool. My name is Jacqueline. I like current events because it ties up all the work that we do in class. I'm excited to be in this program. I especially like the fact that it's on the computer because I can communicate to kids all over the world. I feel important in a way I haven't felt before since the teacher listens to me! Now my ideas are important. That's why I like this program.
Jacqueline

Hi! My name is Benjamin. The news is fascinating to me because once I hear someone talking about something happening on the news, I feel that I have to know about it. And once I do learn about it, I want to learn more and more about it. That's what makes CNN Newsroom and learning about current events and graphics so interesting. Some of the things I've learned on CNN Newsroom have really made me more mature.
Benjamin

My name is Brianna and I go to a school called J. H. House. CNN Newsroom is a news show that teaches us about current events. It helps me learn and be informed about what is going on around the world.
Brianna

My name is Kayla. I am new to this school. I think this is very interesting. I would like to see other students and other peoples, etc. thoughts. I also want to make a difference in the world and learn at the same time.
Kayla

Hi! My name is Lucy. I originally came from Romania and I am 10 years old. We all watch CNN Newsroom to let us know about what's happening around the word, for example... when 9/11/01 hit us we had no idea what was going on. It was terrible what happened to the twin towers. Then I said to myself, "O-my-gosh, that Osama Bin Laden is mean."
Lucy

If you're someone who likes current events, this is your site! Hi! I'm Lindsay, a fifth grade student at J. H. House Elementary. I enjoy many things, especially current events and so should you. This project called NewsQuest is going to be so interesting. Kids communicate with the world! I am going to enjoy all the activities. You will, too.
Lindsay

I am Fernando. I remember the day when I saw the Twin Towers on the CNN Newsroom. I understood why my teacher was crying. It was terrible when I saw it. Two years ago I came to this wonderful school and I could not speak or write English. In Mrs. Barajas' class I learned about the CNN Newsroom progam.
Fernando

Note from Mrs. D
I had a great morning and certainly look forward to working with this terrific little group of students. Today we introduced ourselves, discussed why learning about currents events was important and talked briefly about schoolblogs. They know that their ideas, thoughts, and opinions are most important for this project. Then the students took some time to reflect and think and began writing their thoughts. I have pulled some quotes from each of their papers. I think their words say it all. I ended up the session asking them what made them unique, what were some things they wanted to learn about, and did they have any questions. More tomorrow.... I have lots to plan and think about.
Mrs. D

About

Joyce Hooper is the new principal of J. H. House. She has a commitment to provide an environment for children to help them become the thinkers of the future.

Mrs. Marcia Mateling, the classroom teacher, is an excellent teacher who strives daily to provide opportunities for children to learn and develop critical thinking skills.

Up until January of 2002, I worked at J. H. House as the Instructional Technology Specialist. I am now working at Georgia State University in the field of instructional technology.

I will be working directly with Mrs. Mateling and her children. I will use this weblog to keep a log of the journey. This project will use current events as a springboard to teach critical thinking skills, media awareness and to make connections with the school's curriculum objectives. We will be exploring the possibilities of using weblogs as a vehicle to provide a web site that is interactive, can be frequently updated, and is collaborative for elementary students. We want to see what works, what doesn't, and how we can use weblogs effectively to prepare our students for the future as thinkers.

Anne Davis

This is a site designed

This is a site designed to explore weblog possibilities with elementary students.

Back to School

August 28, 2002

Recent research quoted in "Preparing Schools and School Systems for the 21st Century" from the council of 21 with John Glenn as the Honorary Chair and published by the American Association of School Administrators focuses on the challenge educators have to prepare students for a global knowledge information age.  Research indicated the importance of engaging students in addressing real-world problems, issues important to humanity, and questions that matter.  In this information-rich age, we need to make it our mission to develop critical, creative, and independent thinkers. I am going to try to keep the above paragraph in my mind as I travel to my former school tomorrow morning.  I will be meeting with a group of fifth graders from Mrs. Marcia Mateling's class.  A few years back I had a concern about the lack of knowledge among our children of day-to-day events that were going on in our world.  They were unable to make good connections from their classroom learning to what was happening today as well as what had happened in the past.  We began using CNN Student Newsroom as a base to provide them with a rich environment full of meaningful experiences.  This helped them learn and build a knowledge base with which to make connections to communciate and construct meaning. The children soared!  We were very pleased with the results.  Now I am fortunate to be able to return to introduce them to the world of weblogs.  Our goal is to keep them engaged and thinking.  Let's see where it leads and we welcome comments from you as we explore possiblities for children.