A Lesson In Cooperative Teamwork

By Susan Coney

Newtown Middle School teachers Karen Kirch and Andrew San Angelo teamed together to devise a lesson in which the seventh grade students were to create a realistic newspaper set in the times of the colonists.

By blending the subjects of language arts and history Ms Kirch, who teaches language arts, and social studies teacher Mr San Angelo hoped that the students would gain a more keen sense of what colonial life was like.

The students collaborated in small groups of four to five students to outline and be responsible for creating their own colonial newspaper revolving around life in specific colonial towns such as Portsmouth, Providence, and Charlestown. Every student was responsible to assist with research, help in planning the layout of the paper and contribute one major article, as well as one minor piece to be included in their own small group newspaper. The students were instructed to concentrate on the life, times, and issues of colonists leading up to the Revolutionary War.

The mission of the assignment was for the students to create the best newspaper, out of all of the towns in the colonies, in order to facilitate communication among the colonists. Feature articles were to revolve around major events occurring at the time. The author was assigned to report on the event and in addition give an opinion with appropriate backup text to defend his/her stand.

For minor articles students were allowed to branch out in individual areas of interest, choosing such topics to write about as advice columns, political cartoons, food sections with recipes, weather reports, letters to the editor, classifieds, advertisements and obituaries; all geared to colonial times.

Assistant Principal Kathy Boettner, who was observing the teachers as they presented the initial lesson, commented, “The hours and hours of planning outside of the school is what makes it work. This is interdisciplinary teaching at it’s best!”

The students were given class time to research, prepare, and complete the assignment. Upon completion of the assignment each small group presented its finished product to classmates.