8th grade Current Event Assignment
Students will select one Current Event Report from a credible news source (varying media) that relates to a given theme each 6 weeks. The theme for each 6 weeks is outlined below. A current event, according to this assignment, is defined as any news report published by a credible new source this calendar year about an event happening in our world now.
In the students’ reports, they will:
●Summarize the selected Current Event Report (CE)
○Include important dates, people, events
●Relate the CE to the assigned CE Theme for the 6 weeks
●Connect the selected CE to another published source (another current event, historical event, historical document, commentary of a political figure, etc.)
●Concluding thoughts/student commentary (I think...statements are acceptable in this section)
Grades will be assigned based on evaluation of:
●Reliable sources used and listed as instructed for that 6 weeks
●Content of student report (1-2 pages in length)
●Strong relationship drawn to the assigned theme
●Strong connection built to another source
●Student commentary demonstrating students deep reflection of the report
●Use of best grammar practices
(See attached rubric)
Themes by 6 weeks:
- Individual Rights due Friday, September 8th
- Revolution due Friday, October 20th
- Supreme Court Cases due Friday, December 7th
- Social Injustices due Friday, January 26th
- Political Friendly Fire due Friday, March 9th
- Your pick! Due Friday, April 27th
Plagiarism checker: If the plagiarism score is 25% or higher, the report will be returned with a score of 0%. Student will be given a new due date and an opportunity to correct the report for maximum grade of 90%.
CURRENT EVENTS RUBRIC
Reliable sources (used and cited)[10 pts] / Credible news sources, at least 2 (original story and secondary source)
[10] / Credibility is questionable but sources are cited or missing one source
[5] / Not present at all
[0]
Content of student report
[10 pts] / Organized, concise (points clear with academic vocabulary utilized)
[10] / Lacking some details and organization (simple vocabulary with unclear points)
[5] / Reader is unable to follow report (content is confusing)
[0]
Relationship to theme
[20 pts] / Strong relationship, connections are clear and well supported with detail
[20] / Relationship is lacking detail, connections are unclear and not well supported with detail
[10] / No relationship to theme
[0]
Connection to another credible source
[20 pts] / Strong connection is made between the two sources with supporting evidence
[20] / Connection is weak between sources and lacking supporting evidence
[10] / No connection is made between sources
[0]
Student commentary/reflection
[20 pts] / Student reflection is deep and commentary provided gives reader a clear picture of student understanding
[20] / Student reflection is lacking a deep understanding and commentary provided is unclear/rambling
[10] / No reflection or commentary present
[0]
Grammar/sentence structure
[10] / Best grammar practices are shown, sentence structure supports clear communication of theme, connection, and commentary/reflection
[10] / Basic grammatical errors (capitalization, punctuation, etc) present and sentence structure is confusing and difficult for reader to follow
[5] / Grammatical errors are common and distracting. Sentence structure is unclear
[0]
Submitted successfully
[10] / Submitted to google classroom appropriately
[10] / Total Points:
Notes: