Finding Fake News. Name: To be used with the April 10, 2017, issue. Media Literacy Common Core RI.4.7

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1 Name: Finding Fake News Media Literacy Common Core RI.4.7 After you ve read this week s cover story, your teacher will assign you a news article to evaluate. Complete the checklist below to determine if the news article is credible. 1. What is the headline of the article? a. Does it have a lot of punctuation (!!) or ALL CAPS for emphasis? Yes No b. Does it sound shocking or unbelievable? Yes No 2. Summarize the main topic of the article. 3. What is the news source that published the article? a. Conduct a brief online search. Is the source credible or trustworthy? Yes No b. How do you know? 4. Is there a byline (writer s name) attached to the article? Yes No a. Conduct a brief search on the writer. Has he or she had any other articles published? Yes No 5. Does the article have a recent date on it? Yes No 6. Have other news organizations covered this topic? Yes No If so, can you list at least three credible sources that reported the story? 7. Search online for the names of experts and organizations mentioned in the article. Are they credible? oyes o No a. How do you know? 8. Based on your research, do you believe this news article is credible? Explain.

2 This spider was recently discovered in the Amazon rainforest. STUDENT NEWS express Dozens of giant baby spiders hatched from these eggs. Monster Babies! Scientists discover a 12-inch-long spider and dozens of its giant eggs. By Michelle Cullen Digrancesco Imagine a spider that can grow to be a foot long. It has razor-sharp fangs and lays dozens of eggs the size of gum balls. It sounds like something out of a science fiction novel. But this spider actually exists. Scientists recently discovered it in the Amazon rainforest. Located in South America, the Amazon is the largest rainforest in the world. The new species is called the kileto spider. Scientists from the Exotic Species Institute of Biodiverse Sciences, in Brazil, spotted it in 2015 using hidden cameras. The spider had hidden under leaves at the base of a tree. It was guarding dozens of large eggs. The scientists observed the spider on camera for about two weeks. During that time, the eggs hatched, and dozens of 6-inch-long baby spiders came crawling out! I couldn t believe my eyes, says Olivia Ruagliarella, one of the scientists who studied the new spider. The babies are so much bigger than most adult spiders. The new species is a type of huntsman spider. These spiders are known for having extremely long legs. But scientists had never seen a huntsman spider with legs as long as this one. The new species also lays eggs that are much bigger than those of other huntsman spiders. To find out if the spider was really a new species, the scientists couldn t rely on just the video footage. They had to collect specimens, or samples, to bring back to their lab. But that was no easy task. The spider has a poisonous bite that can paralyze large prey including everything from birds to wild hogs. The scientists wore protective masks, gloves, and suits. They lured the spiders into a cage. After two years of comparing the spiders with other huntsman spiders, the scientists finally announced that they had found a new species. It was thrilling to be that close to a new species, says Ruagliarella. The fact that they are so dangerous makes it even more exciting. OBERT PICKETT/VISUALS UNLIMITED, INC./GETTY IMAGES (SPIDER); ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/GETTY IMAGES (EGGS)

3 Twenty-two babies hatched from eggs laid by this mother dragon. An olm egg hatches in the Postojna Cave. September 22, 2016 Monster Alert! Baby dragons were born this summer in a cave in Europe. By Jennifer Marino Walters This summer, a cave in Central Europe got a lot of attention. It became home to more than two dozen baby dragons. These amphibians (animals that begin life in the water and move onto land as adults) are actually called olms. An olm is a type of salamander that looks like a dragon. That s how it got its nickname. The birth of these creatures is a very rare event. A female olm might lay eggs just once every six years. Excitement over the possibility of new babies started in January. That s when the first of several eggs was spotted deep within the Postojna (post-oy-nah) Cave in Slovenia. In the end, with the help of scientists, 22 olms were born between May 30 and July 14. They are now growing into healthy teenage dragons. Olms live in underwater caves in Central Europe. These caves are difficult to reach, so scientists don t often get to observe olms in their natural habitat (place where a type of animal or plant usually lives). The fact that they are so mysterious makes them even more intriguing, says Sabina Paternost, a spokesperson for the researchers at Postojna Cave. Olms, which can grow to be up to 16 inches long, are one of the world s largest cave animals. No natural light reaches these deep caves. Many animals that live there can t see. But olms have other special skills that help them survive. They use their incredible senses of smell and hearing to hunt worms, crabs, and snails. Olms can also survive without food for as long as 10 years. When a female olm laid 64 eggs in the Postojna Cave last winter, scientists thought that only two or three of them would hatch. The last time an olm laid eggs at Postojna Cave, none of the eggs hatched. So this time, scientists worked very hard to care for the olm eggs. About one-third of the baby olms survived, and they appear to be doing well. IZTOK MEDIA FOR POSTOJNA CAVE (ALL IMAGES)

4 Name: Star Player Reading a Chart Common Core RI.4.7 Jackie Robinson is a baseball legend. Not only did he break the color barrier in baseball, he was also a very talented athlete. Read the chart below to answer the questions. New York Times Company/Getty Images Birth Name: Jack Roosevelt Robinson Born: January 31,1919, in Cairo, Georgia Died: October 24, 1972, in Stamford, Connecticut College: University of California, Los Angeles First Major League Game: April 15, 1947 Team: Brooklyn Dodgers Positions: Second Base, Third Base, First Base Awards: Rookie of the Year (1947); National League Most Valuable Player (1949); World Series Champion (1955); Hall of Fame (1962) Year Hits Home Runs Runs Batted In Stolen Bases SOURCES: National Baseball Hall of Fame and 1. When was Jackie Robinson born? 2. During the year Robinson was named Most Valuable Player, how many bases did he steal? 3. In which two years did Robinson hit the most home runs? 4. How many more hits did Robinson have in 1954 than in 1955? 5. In which year do you think Robinson was most successful? Explain your answer.

5 Your Opinion Counts! Edition 4 Opinion Writing Common Core W.4.1 In this week s debate, you read that some cities are discussing a new law to make it illegal to cross the street while texting. Imagine that your town s mayor is deciding whether your town should adopt a similar law. Write a persuasive letter that states your opinion and includes reasons supporting your argument. Dear, (Mayor s Name) (Date) Statement: Give your opinion. Supporting reason 1: Provide the strongest reason to support your statement. Supporting reason 2: Provide another reason to support your statement. Supporting reason 3: Provide a final reason to support your statement. Call to action: State what you think should be done next. Sincerely, (Your Name)

6 Name Date Edition 4 Be a Quiz Whiz! For each question below, fill in the circle next to the correct answer. Vacation to the Moon Page 2 1. What is the main idea of the article? A No humans have orbited the moon since B A company plans to send people on a trip around the moon. C Sending tourists to the moon would be a very bad idea. D SpaceX rockets deliver cargo to the International Space Station. 2. According to the sidebar A Look at the Moon, the craters on the moon s surface were formed by. A strong winds B space rocks C volcanic eruptions D extreme heat To the Rescue! Page 3 3. The new law that passed in San Francisco is intended to. A reduce the number of animals in shelters B get people to adopt dogs instead of cats C result in more puppy and kitten mills opening in the city D cause pet-shop owners to close stores 4. You can infer that many dog and cat breeders in San Francisco probably the new law. A supported C introduced B liked D opposed 5. Which detail supports the idea that some breeders treat animals cruelly? A Many breeders take good care of their animals. B... hundreds of animals at a time are raised in cramped, dirty spaces. C Each year, shelters across the U.S. take in more than 7 million dogs and cats. D About 2.6 million of those animals don t get adopted and are put to sleep. Don t Be Fooled by Fake News! Pages The article supports the idea that. A most news shared on social media is fake B most kids have a hard time identifying fake news stories C most websites with ads publish fake news D fake news doesn t affect adults 7. A person who is skeptical of what he or she reads online would likely. A share a shocking story on social media without checking its source B avoid any website with ads C search online to check the information in an article that seems hard to believe D trust only articles that are shared by friends 8. What is Facebook planning to do to help prevent the spread of fake news? A work with fact-checking groups to label fake news articles B close accounts that share fake news C remove all ads from the site D allow only articles from The New York Times to be shared Sliding Into History Page 6 9. Which detail from the article best explains what the color barrier was? A He wore number 42 when he played his first game. B An unwritten rule had kept black players out of the major leagues since the 1880s. C... Robinson faced many challenges. D Fans threatened him. 10. After Jackie Robinson retired in 1957,. A the Dodgers won their first World Series B the Negro Leagues were started C he joined the St. Louis Cardinals D many more black players were given the opportunity to enter the major leagues

7 Name Date Edition 4 Close-Reading Questions Refer to this week s cover story, Don t Be Fooled by Fake News! to respond to the questions below. Reread the article to find details that support your answers. Remember to write in complete sentences. 1. What is the purpose of the first paragraph? 2. How does the author support the claim that fake news articles may play a role in real-world events? 3. Use information from the article to explain why someone might purposely publish an article that isn t true. 4. How are some big websites working to stop the flow of fake news? 5. What role can you play in preventing the spread of fake news? Explain your answer using details from the sidebar.