The Week in Rap

Looking for a great resource to help jump-start discussions about current events? The Week in Rap summarizes current events in the U.S. and around the world in an engaging and entertaining way.  It reminds me of some of the songs done in the Bill Nye the Science Guy videos or what you might see on ChannelOne.  Take a look at this special episode done for graduating seniors last year.


The Last 18 Years in Rap 1993-2011 from Flocabulary on Vimeo.

TweenTribune

TweenTribune is a website that contains infinite number or current news articles that are categorized by subject and written at a middle school level.  While anyone can read the articles on TeenTribune without registering or logging in, students who do are able to post comments or take part in writing prompts or essay contests.  Teachers who register their classes are able to review and eventually approve all student posts prior to their being published. Students enjoy not only reading articles, but the reactions other students post about them.  This in turn, motivates them to post their own reactions to the articles.  Because students can select the topic or categories they wish to read, they always have high-interest reading materials available to them.  TweenTribune is available 24/7 as well, which, if students have 1:1 access they will never have to ask, "What do I do now?"