Each year the Hoosier State Press Association and the Indiana State Reading Association prepare a tabloid with ideas for Newspaper in Education month. The tabloid is mailed in February to all members of the Indiana State Reading Association. (All members of local reading councils are members of the state group.)

     We should take advantage of the opportunity to use the resources developed over the past year by a dedicated group of teachers and Newspaper in Education coordinators and conveniently listed in the tabloid. We need to provide the same kind of attention to the reading of newspapers as we do to engaging our students with books and magazines.

     Students need access to newspapers as well as opportunities to read them. Undoubtedly, there is need for our students to have suitable newspaper experiences throughout the school year. But Newspaper in Education month is a special time when we can provide students with an intensive project that features the realm of newspapers. Moreover, as a vehicle for encouraging reading, newspapers have more power than many of the activities that they replace during Newspaper in Education month.

     One of the special activities mentioned in the tabloid is Target Day. It involves compiling a collection of newspapers from a specified date for a comparison study. Students write in advance of the date requesting a copy of several different newspapers from around the country. On a designated day, students examine the collection for content and design. The names and addresses of the newspapers are listed in the tabloid.

     In a Community of Readers, middle grades students read newspapers. When we help engage young adolescents with newspapers, we help them develop a habit of daily reading of the newspaper--a practice that increases vocabulary; provides information about local, state, national, and international news; and provides a daily variety and vitality in reading.