A Royal Wedding

QUEEN'S GRANDSON ENGAGED

He’s second in line to the British throne. She works for a children’s party-supplies store. They recently got engaged, and it’s likely that one day he will be King of England and she will be his Queen.

Prince William proposed to “commoner” Catherine Middleton last month when the two were on holiday in Africa. All of Britain is riveted by the attractive, likeable couple.

She’s particularly popular because she isn’t descended from royalty. Her parents are a former flight attendant and a dispatcher, and they now run a mail-order party-supplies business called Party Pieces. She has two younger siblings, Pippa and James.

Diana and Charles pull away from the
cathedral in a horse-drawn carriage
on their wedding day, nearly 30 years ago.

William, of course, has a younger brother, Harry—third in line for the throne. And a famous father, Charles, who is first in line to be King of England should Queen Elizabeth step down.

The couple plans to get married next Spring or Summer. And it won’t be a small affair. The British public will demand a lavish wedding in a huge cathedral with thousands of invited guests and—if past royal weddings are anything to go by—horse-drawn carriages. People in Britain are also hoping the day will be declared a holiday so everyone can have the day off work (or school).

King William and Queen Catherine. It has a nice ring to it. And speaking of rings, Catherine Middleton is now wearing one of the most famous rings in the world—the 18-carat sapphire-and-diamond ring that belonged to William’s late mother, Princess Diana.

Update: They've set a date! William and Catherine will marry on April 29, 2011, at Westminster Abbey.

Writing/Discussion Prompt
People have been following William's and Catherine’s relationship for many years. They are regularly on the cover of magazines and newspapers and on TV. Do you think it is fair that William’s and Catherine’s lives are available for everyone to see?

People are very interested in not only William’s and Catherine’s lives; they are also fascinated by all celebrities. Why do think we're so interested in celebrities?

Curriculum Prompt
Excellent writing has a strong "voice." Voice is the way someone expresses their personality in their writing. The voice may change if someone is using very simple words or very long, complicated words. A writer can also add expression and voice to their writing through the use of exclamation marks or question marks.

Take a highlighter and highlight the parts of the article where you can “hear” the author’s voice. Are there parts of the article where we can find out what the author is thinking?

Primary
identify some elements of style, including voice, word choice, and different types of sentences, and explain how they help readers understand texts (OME, Reading: 2.4)

Junior
analyze texts and explain how various elements in them contribute to meaning (OME, Reading: 1.7)

Grammar Feature: Adjectives
Adjectives are words that describe a noun (person, place or thing). Identify all the adjectives in the article. As a whole class or in small groups, discuss why adjectives are an important part of writing.

Run someone's life through Control TV

A new Internet TV show lets viewers run someone’s life.

Cameras are pointed at 25-year-old Tristan Couvares, following his every move. Viewers can watch what he does, for 18 hours a day, on the Internet.

The twist is, they can also be able to vote on what he should do next.

The Web show is called “Control TV” and it’s a lot like a movie called The Truman Show, which starred actor Jim Carrey. There are also some “reality TV” shows, like Big Brother, that follow real people through their days. However, this show will be different because it lets viewers make decisions for the person.

The producers say the show is designed to help Couvares make some decisions in his life. The producers make sure the suggestions from viewers are helpful, and not hurtful, to Couvares.

The decisions could be as simple as getting Couvares to eat oatmeal rather than an English muffin for breakfast, or to wear funny clothes when he goes for a job interview.

Viewers can follow the show at Control TV and sign up for cellphone alerts, which lets them decide things for Couvares about 10 to 15 times a day. Voting is for multiple options: A, B or C.

Writing/Discussion Prompt

Reality TV has always been very popular. Game shows, which date back to 1938, were the first examples of reality TV. Today, televisions have lots of reality shows, including like Survivor and Big Brother. Why do you think people like watching reality TV so much? Would you ever go on a reality TV show? Why or why not?

Curriculum Prompt
As you read this article, did you have “flow” in your reading? Were you able to raise and lower your voice as you read in order to highlight and emphasize interesting portions?

Primary
Read appropriate texts at a sufficient rate and with sufficient expression to convey the sense of the text readily to the reader and an audience (OME, Reading: 3.3).

Junior
Read appropriate texts with expression and confidence, adjusting reading strategies and reading rate to match the form and purpose (OME, Reading: 3.3).

Grammar Feature: One sentence paragraph.
Today’s article includes 2 one-sentence paragraphs. When is it okay to use one sentence paragraphs and what is their purpose? The following excerpt from Article Base explains:

“Unlike paragraphs with multiple sentences, a one-sentence paragraph places heavy emphasis on the idea. It is a high-impact tool for telling the reader, "This is very important." Very few ideas require this level of emphasis. Used sparingly, one-sentence paragraphs can be very effective for pointing out critical ideas or keeping the reader mentally focused on the content.”

Brave Canadians honoured

The Medal of Bravery.

(Image: Wikimedia
Commons, Dreamafter.)

AWARDS FOR BRAVERY

Last week, 52 Canadians received awards for bravery. They were given the medals by our new Governor-General, David Johnston, at a special ceremony in Ottawa.

Here are some of the people who were given awards:

* Thomas Manuel won the Medal of Bravery for protecting his wife and three grandchildren from an intruder. He made a rope out of bedsheets and shirts and got everyone out of the house safely. Once outside, Manuel was shot several times by the burglar, who was later caught and arrested. Manuel is from Fort Good Hope, Northwest Territories.

* Sergeant Bryant Wood of the Port Hope police force received the Star of Courage and the Medal of Bravery for saving people in two separate house fires. Last year, Sgt. Wood was sent to an apartment building, where he found the first and second floors in flames. He and another officer opened a window and through the thick, black smoke they pulled a man and two women to safety. Another woman refused to leave because she was searching for her cat. Wood climbed inside and carried the woman to safety. The smoke was so thick he couldn’t see, but his partner called to him from the window and he followed his partner’s voice until he got outside.

* Deborah Chiborak of Winnipeg rescued an elderly woman trapped under her motorized scooter in the path of a train.

* Casey Pierce of Calgary won a Star of Courage for rescuing a couple whose canoe tipped on a lake in the Rockies.

The Governor-General offered the medal winners, “the thanks of a grateful nation. We are fortunate to have such heroes in our midst.”

Related links:
Article on the CBC website about the medals ceremony.
Canada Gets a new Governor-General.

Curriculum Connection
The people who received the medals of bravery were described as “heroes.”

As a class, write a list of characteristics/adjectives that describe a hero.

Identify heroes that you know from books, magazines, movies and the media. Describe these heroes and explain whether you think they are heroes based on the list created by the class.

Primary
extend understanding of texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge and experience, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them (OME, Reading: 1.6)

Junior
extend understanding of texts by connecting, comparing, and contrasting the ideas in them to their own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them (OME, Reading: 1.6)

Grammar Feature
Bullet points are used throughout the article. Bullet points are generally found in non-fiction, rather than fiction writing. They help to make writing clear, easy-to-read and organized.

Help your students identify bullet points in the article, and discuss why they are used.

Encourage students to find non-fiction resources in your class that contain bullet points.

Extensions for Primary and Junior
When Johnston gave the heroes their medals, he explained that they are special because not everyone would have done what they did.
Do you think this is true? Use examples from your own life to explain your answer.
Why do you think people don’t always help other people in need?

Actor Johnny Depp helps avert a mutiny

JACK SPARROW SHOWS UP AT PRIMARY SCHOOL

A group of schoolchildren in Britain got the surprise of their lives recently, when actor Johnny Depp showed up at the school, dressed as the character Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean.

Actor Johnny Depp surprised
students at Meridian
Primary School in London.
Image: Edward Scissorhands,
Wikimedia Commons

Grade-four student Beatrice Delap had written Depp a letter, telling him that she wanted to mutiny against the teachers at Meridian Primary School in Greenwich, and that she needed his help.

She got the letter into Depp’s hands by giving it to a security guard where Depp was filming Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides at a location nearby.

She never dreamed he would actually show up at her school!


Not only did he show up, but he brought with him a cast of four pirates in full costume. They performed pirate songs and dances at a quickly arranged assembly.



Depp called Delap out of the audience and gave her a hug, joking that, “maybe we shouldn’t mutiny ‘cause there are police outside monitoring me.” Instead, he suggested that they eat candy every day and not brush their teeth until they turn green and fall out.

He pulled out Beatrice’s letter, which read:

“We are a bunch of budding young pirates. Normally we’re a right handful, but we’re having trouble mutinying against the teachers. We’d love it if you could come and help.”

He said he plans to frame the letter.

Related Links
Someone (presumably a teacher) took a video of the visit. View the two-minute YouTube video here.

Curriculum Connection

Questioning:

Before students begin reading, encourage them to formulate questions about the article after reading the title: “Jack Sparrow Shows up at Primary School.” Then have students pose questions while they read and after they are finished reading the article. 

Discuss these questions as a class and encourage students to use inference and prediction to answer the questions. 

As a class, indentify why questioning is useful as a reading comprehension strategy (for people to focus their reading and to clarify their understanding of a text). 

Primary

identify a variety of reading comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after reading to understand texts (OME, Reading: 1.3)

Junior

identify a variety of reading comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after reading to understand increasingly complex texts (OME, Reading: 1.3). 

Grammar Feature

Quotation marks are used twice in the article for the following purposes: to indicate speech and to quote the student’s letter to Johnny Depp. 

Discuss when and how quotation marks are used in writing. 

Extensions for Primary and Junior 

Johnny Depp’s unexpected visit would have been a wonderful surprise for the students at Meridian Primary School. If you could choose any famous person to come and visit your school, who would you pick and why?

"Doc" Halladay pitches a no-hitter

FORMER JAYS PITCHER MAKES HISTORY

Baseball pitcher Roy Halladay has done something no other pitcher has done since 1956. The pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies pitched a no-hitter in the playoffs.

A no-hitter means that Halladay, whose nickname is “Doc,” pitched to 28 batters, and not one of them was able to hit their way to first base. It may not sound that hard, but it is -- and it doesn’t happen very often. Most pitchers go their whole careers without ever pitching a no-hitter.

And to do it in the playoffs is even rarer.

And here’s something even more incredible. This is Halladay’s second no-hitter this season. There haven’t been two no-hitters in one season since 1973. In fact, there have only been five pitchers ever in the history of the game to do that.

No wonder Phillies fans are calling this month, “Doc-tober.”

To get his no-hitter, Halladay threw 104 pitches. The main pitches he used were a fastball, a changeup and a curve ball.

Halladay used to be a Toronto Blue Jay. He pitched for the Jays from 1998 until 2009, when he was traded to the Phillies.

He got the nickname “Doc” from a Blue Jays announcer, who borrowed it from famous wild west gunslinger Doc Holliday.

Curriculum Connection
Today’s article states: “Most pitchers go their whole careers without ever pitching a no-hitter. And to do it in the playoffs is even rarer.”

Why do you think it would be more difficult to pitch a no-hitter during the playoffs?

Primary and Junior
make inferences about texts using stated and implied ideas from the texts as evidence (OME, Reading: 1.5).

Grammar Feature
In school, students are often taught that they need to write in paragraphs, which should be about five sentences long. This article (and most articles in newpapers, magazines and journals) doesn’t follow that rule. For example, in this article, some paragraphs are one or two sentences long.

Why do you think journalists write in this style? Do you think it is effective?

Extensions
Roy Halladay played for the Toronto Blue Jays between 1998 and 2009. Even though he was an excellent pitcher, many Americans had never even heard of him until he left Toronto and played for the Phillies.

If you were a professional athlete, would you choose to stay in Canada and play for a Canadian team, or would you choose to play in the United States?

Rowlings hints at possible new HP book

ANOTHER HARRY POTTER ADVENTURE?

Might Harry Potter be called into service again, to keep the wizarding (and Muggle) world safe from the likes of Voldemort and his accomplices?

The answer is: "maybe."

It's not much, but as anyone who's ever asked his parents for a new video game knows, it's better than "no."

Author J. K. Rowlings is open to the possibility that she may write another Harry Potter book. Or maybe even a few more.

That's what she told talk show host Oprah Winfrey in an interview recently.

The characters are still in her head, Rowlings said, and she "could definitely" write more books in the series.

The Harry Potter series, beginning with Harry Potter and the Philospher's Stone and ending with the seventh novel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, brought Rowling international fame. More than 400 million books have been sold worldwide. The series also made her one of the richest women in Britain, according to Forbes magazine.

With wealth have also come pressures, such as reporters searching through her trash and constant pestering from the paparazzi.

So will we see another Harry Potter novel in the very near future? Probably not very soon. Rowling says she's moved on to a new phase in her writing.

In the meantime, kids can always close their eyes, wave a wand... and make a wish.

Curriculum Connection
Today’s article contains several words and names that may be difficult for a young speller to pronounce. Identify and examine these words.

Primary and Junior
Predict the meaning of and rapidly solve unfamiliar words using different types of cues, including: semantic cues, syntactic cues, and graphophonic cues (OME, Reading: 3.2).

Grammar Feature
Alert students to the quotations around one and two word statements. Why does the author do this? What affect does it have?

"maybe."

"no."

"could definitely"

Extensions
Primary
The Harry Potter series is very famous. The author of this series has made a lot of money making these books and they have helped her become famous. After writing seven books, J.K. Rowling decided to stop writing these books.
If you are a fan of these books, what would you tell her to convince her to keep writing them?
If you do not like the Harry Potter series, what would you tell her to convince her that she should be writing different types of books?
Lastly, if you are unfamiliar with these books, why do you think someone would stop doing something that they are very good at?

Canada gets a new Governor-General

Canada's new Governor-
General, David Johnston.

DAVID JOHNSTON APPOINTED GOVERNOR-GENERAL


Canada and the United States originally left England on very different terms. The United States broke ties with England completely, whereas Canada continued to be an English colony, accepting the British king or queen as its own.

Canada’s connection to Britain is maintained by a special head of state known as the Governor-General.

The Governor-General is the link between Canada’s Prime Minister and Britain’s Queen. To this day, when certain Acts of Parliament are passed, it is the Governor-General who obtains the Queen's signature. The Governor-General is also the Queen’s representative at official events such as military ceremonies.

The Governor-General is appointed by Queen Elizabeth II, on a recommendation from Prime Minister Stephen Harper. In reality, Stephen Harper chooses the person and Queen Elizabeth signs off on the appointment—and although it is unlikely that she would say no, technically she does hold that power.

There is no set time limit for a person to hold the office of Governor-General, but it’s usually about five years. There is a Canadian tradition of alternating between French-Canadian and English-Canadian Governors-General.

Since 2005, Canada’s Governor-General has been Michaelle Jean. However, she recently stepped down. Last Friday, Canada appointed its 28th Governor-General: David Johnston.
The former university professor said that his priorities as Governor-General will be supporting families and children; learning and innovation; and encouraging philanthropy and volunteerism. He said that we need to “cherish our teachers.” Johnston has a wife, Sharon, and five children, all of them girls.

Related Links
Here is the Governor-General's official website. On the site, notice the "coat of arms" that has been created specifically for  him.

Curriculum Connection

A previous Governor-General, the Marquess of Lorne, believed that the position of Governor-General was very difficult. He explained: "It is no easy thing to be a Governor-General of Canada. You must have the patience of a saint, the smile of a cherub, the generosity of an Indian prince, and the back of a camel."

Explain what the Marquess of Lorne means by his statement. Discuss what characteristics you think are important for Governors-General to have.

Primary
Express personal opinions about ideas presented in texts (OME, Reading: 1.8).

Junior
Make judgments and draw conclusions about ideas in texts and cite stated or implied evidence from the text to support their views (OME, Reading: 1.8).

Grammar Feature
Discuss the different ways in which words are made plural.

“To this day, when certain laws are passed, it is the Governor-General who goes to the Queen for her signature.” (add an ‘s’)

“The former university professor said that his priorities as Governor-General will be supporting families and children; learning and innovation; and encouraging philanthropy and volunteerism.” (change the ‘y’ to an ‘i’ and add ‘es’)

“There is a Canadian tradition of alternating between French-Canadian and English-Canadian Governors-General.” (exceptions to the common rules)

Extensions
Primary
Many previous Governors-General have backgrounds in politics. Michaelle Jean, who was the former Governor-General, was a journalist and broadcaster who did not have experience in politics. Do you think it is important for the Governor-General to be a politician?

Junior
One of the main roles of the Governor-General is to be “the link between Canada’s Prime Minister and Britain’s Queen.” This role is controversial because some people believe that Canada should separate itself from Britain; whereas other people think Canada should maintain its ties to the commonwealth. What is your opinion? Do you think the role of Governor-General is important, or do you think it is irrelevant?

Toronto's mayoral race

WHO WILL BECOME TORONTO'S NEXT MAYOR?
That's the question voters will answer on October 25, when they elect a new mayor to replace retiring Toronto Mayor David Miller.


Will Rob Ford be Mayor Miller's
successor, or will he be overtaken?
Stay tuned until Oct. 25!

It has been an exciting race so far, largely because of a former Toronto city councillor named Rob Ford. Ford has a "big personality" and doesn't hesitate to speak his mind. Many people thought that such a big and boisterous candidate could never succeed in the race to become mayor, but Ford came out as the early leader and has maintained that position.

In fact, if the election were to be held tomorrow, Ford would win with about 28 per cent of the voters choosing him. In second place would be another former councillor, George Smitherman, with 23 per cent of the votes.

How do we know who might win an election? Before most elections, companies are hired by the media to take "polls" to find out who people are thinking of voting for. They call hundreds or thousands of random voters and ask them, "If the election were held today, who would you vote for?" That way, we get an idea of who the front-runners are and who's not likely to be in the running.

In the Toronto election the main candidates are: Rob Ford, George Smitherman, Joe Pantalone and Rocco Rossi.

About 25 per cent of Toronto residents are either voting for someone else or still undecided about who they're going to choose. And that's a large margin of error - this election is still a toss-up. Stay tuned!

Curriculum Connection
1. How does the headline on this article help you understand what the article is about?
Primary and Junior
Identify text features and explain how they help readers understand texts (OME, Reading: 2.3).

2. Why do you think the headline was written as a question rather than a statement?
Primary and Junior
1.5 Use stated and implied information and ideas in texts to make simple inferences and reasonable predictions about them (OME, Reading: 1.5).

Grammatical Feature
Colon: Highlight the use of a colon within the article.

In the Toronto election so far the main candidates have been: Rob Ford (28%), George Smitherman (23%), Joe Pantalone (10%), Rocco Rossi (7%) and Sarah Thomson (7%).

Discussion Topics
Each mayoral candidate has put forward several ideas to improve the city. Some ways in which they propose to improve the city: increasing public transit, focusing on the environment and decreasing homelessness. In your opinion, what are the most important issues facing people living in Toronto?

Primary and Junior
1.6 Extend understanding of texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge and experience, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them (OME, Reading, 1.6).

Celebrities swarm Toronto



Image: TIFF website.

 TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL NOW ON

There are lots of international celebrities in Toronto right now, because the city is hosting a huge film festival, called TIFF or the “Toronto International Film Festival.”

Big stars like Natalie Portman (Queen Amidala from Star Wars), Matt Damon, Colin Firth, Hayden Christensen and Zach Galifianakis are in town for their movies’ premieres.

During the festival, three- to four-hundred new films are shown in 37 different theatres venues all over the city. The festival is a way for directors, who have new films, to “debut” them to thousands of people. More than a quarter of a million people (250,000) attend TIFF each year.

Other film festivals are held around the world - perhaps the most famous is the Cannes Film Festival, held each year in France. However, the Toronto Film Festival has taken its place as one of the most prestigious in the world.

The 2010 Toronto International Film Festival runs for 11 days, ending on September 19.

Related links
Want to keep tabs on which celebrities are in town for the festival? One of the best ways is through Toronto blogs like torontoist.