Lesson Overview:

This is the second in a two-lesson unit for students of English as a Second Language (ESL). Having read several versions of the story of Cinderella, the students are introduced to the format of an English-language newspaper. The students write, design, and produce a newspaper about the Cinderella story.

Length of Lesson:

Six 45-minute periods.

Notes:

This lesson can be adapted for ESL students in grades 7-8.

Instructional Objectives:

Students will:

• familiarize themselves with the content and format of English-language newspapers.
• use design and creative writing skills to create an original newspaper based on Cinderella.

Supplies:

• Colored pencils
• Construction paper
• Glue
• Notecards
• Rulers
• Scissors
• Complete issues of a newspaper such as The Washington Post
• Complete newspaper comic sections
  

Instructional Plan:

Day One

Divide students into groups. Give each student team a daily newspaper. The editions need not be identical; however, make sure that each team has the following sections:

• the front page
• the metro section
• a style or lifestyle section
• a sports section
• the classified ads
• a food or dining section

Ask the students if they receive a newspaper at home. Discuss the importance of a newspaper (it keeps you informed of daily events, community news, various opinions about current issues, job listings, entertainment events, etc.). Distribute and discuss the Vocabulary Handout.

Distribute scissors, glue, and construction paper. Have students find examples of the vocabulary words in their newspaper. Have the teams cut out examples, paste them on construction paper, and label the them. Collect these vocabulary sheets. Hand out a second sheet of construction paper. Using the newspaper sections, have teams find the following:

• the weather forecast
• a sports score
• an ad for a car
• the start time of a movie they want to see
• a coupon for a grocery item
• a comic strip

Have students cut out these items, paste them on construction paper and label the examples. Collect all student work and the newspapers.

Day Two

Hand out a front page of a newspaper to each student. Hand out the Newspaper 5W’s and H Worksheet. Explain the sheet to students (The "Five Ws and H" of journalism are "who," "what," "where," "when," "why," and "how.") Have students complete the sheet. Collect student worksheets. Hand out copies of the newspaper comic section. Discuss what a cartoon is and the parts unique to a cartoon. Talk about dialogue and thinking bubbles. Return the students' copies of their original version of Cinderella, completed in the previous lesson in this unit, One Story, Many Tales. Hand out the Comic Strip Worksheet. Explain the worksheet to the students.

Have students begin work on their cartoons before assigning this for homework.

Day Three

Have students share their cartoons with the class. Collect the cartoons for editing, before handing them back for the students to complete a final draft of their work. Explain to the students that they are going to create an entire newspaper related to Cinderella, using the Glass Slipper News interactive print press.

Brainstorm with the class what they would like to write for their class newspaper. Write these ideas on the board. If needed, prompt them with suggestion such as:

• a front page story
• letters to the editor
• an advice columnn
• a description of Cinderella’s dress (for the Style section)
• a review of the ball
• an ad for a lost slipper
• a “car” classified ad for Cinderella’s coach
• a weather forecast
• a crossword puzzle

By now the students will have ideas about what they would like to write. Have students work on their newspaper contribution drafts. Help the students edit their work and prepare final drafts. Have students paste their final drafts into the Glass Slipper News interactive print press. When all the text has been added, print a copy of the newspaper and allow time for students to add images or draw illustrations.

Assessment:

Assess the students' performance based on the following criteria:

• Ability to identify different components of a newspaper.
• Appropriateness of the student's contribution to the Cinderella newspaper.
• Adherence to the appropriate format for the contribution (for example, a classified ad is written in the style and with the content that one would expect in such an ad).
• Creativity and imaginativeness of work product.

Sources:

Print:

• Compton, Joanne. Ken Compton (ill.). Ashpet: An Appalachian Tale. New York: Holiday House, 1994.
• Climo, Shirley. Ruth Heller (ill.). The Egyptian Cinderella. New York: HarperCollins, 1989.
• Climo, Shirley. Ruth Heller (ill.). The Korean Cinderella. New York: HarperCollins, 1993.
• Baxter, Nicola. Cinderella. Jon Davis (ill.). New York: Ladybird Books USA, 1996.
• Brown, Marcia (trans. and ill.). Cinderella. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1981.
• Huck, Charlotte. Anita Lobel (ill.) Princess Furball. New York: Scholastic, 1989.
• Jackson, Ellen. Kevin O’Malley (ill.). Cinder Edna. New York: William Morrow & Company, Inc., 1994.
• Lang, Andrew. Marty Noble (ill.). Cinderella and Other Stories from the Blue Fairy Book. Unabridged. Mineola NY: Dover Publications, Inc., 1996.
• Louie, Ai-Ling. Ed Young (ill.) Yeh-Shen. A Cinderella Tale from China. New York: Philomel Books, 1982.
• Perlman, Janet. Cinderella Penguin or the Little Glass Flipper. New York: Puffin Books, 1992.
• Pollock, Penny. The Turkey Girl: A Zuni Cinderella. Ed Young (ill.). Boston, New York, London: Little, Brown, 1995.
• San Souci, Robert D. Daniel San Souci (ill.). Sootface: An Ojibwa Cinderella Story. New York: Doubleday Books for Young Readers, 1994.
• San Souci, Robert. Jerry Pinkney (ill.). The Talking Eggs: A Folktale from the American South. New York: Scholastic, 1989.
• Steptoe, Joe. Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale. New York: Lathrop, Lee, & Shepard, 1987.

Authors:

• Phyllis Gron, ESL Teacher
  Fairfax County Public Schools
  Alexandria, VA