Teachers and homeschool parents, please share this with your students. Using this guide will make your subjects more relevant and interesting to your pupils and will encourage creative thought. If you or your students have any suggestions or ideas for these teacher guides, please email Sarah Nachin – [email protected]
This guide is based on the newest Florida Standards for grade school through high school.
Activities and Questions based on the Feb. 21, 2025 – Feb. 27, 2025 issue
Visual Arts Activity for High School (VA.912.C.2.2) Assess the works of others, using established or derived criteria, to support conclusions and judgments about artistic progress.
Read the article on pg. B-4 and B-5 about artist Kim Ritchie Shields. Then log onto his website: https://www.kimritchieshields.com/works. View examples of his work on different subjects (landscape, portraits, still life, etc.) Then, write an essay of at least 300 words, giving your assessment of at least two of those, describing technique, skill and what the image conveys to the viewer.
Theatre Arts Activity for High School: (TH.912.S.2.3) Demonstrate an understanding of a dramatic work by developing a character analysis for one or more of its major characters and show how the analysis clarifies the character’s physical and emotional dimensions.
Read the article on pg. B-12 about the Stage West production of “Almost Maine.” Then, go online to research information about the play, focusing on some of the major characters in the play. Analyze two of those characters describing that person’s personality, his goal, and whether or not they achieved their goal. Your essay should be at least 400 words. The following URL is very helpful: https://www.supersummary.com/almost-maine/summary/
Comprehension Activity for Middle School: (ELA.K12.EE.2.1) Read and comprehend grade-level complex texts proficiently.
Read the article on pages B-1 and B-5 about the Marine Corps League’s visit to the nursing home. Then answer the following questions in complete sentences:
1. What is the purpose of the Wish List program?
2. How many assisted living facilities are involved in this program?
3. What are the steps in completing this program?
4. What help does the Marine Corps League need in order to make this program successful?
5. Why is the final stage of this program called “Christmas in July?” Give two reasons.
6. What other organizations and businesses are involved in the Wish List program and what needs do they fulfill?
Vocabulary activity for Middle School: (ELA.6.V.1.3) Apply knowledge of context clues, figurative language, word relationships, reference materials, and/or background knowledge to determine the connotative and denotative meaning of words and phrases, appropriate to grade level.
Read the article on pages B-1 and B-12 about the Fine Arts Council. Then, write the definition that comes closest to the meaning of each of the following words as it is used in the sentence. Try to figure out what the word means by the context rather than consulting a dictionary. Also, determine what part of speech it is by how it’s used in the sentence, if possible. Then, use each word in a sentence of your own:
1. perspective
2. ensemble
3. permaculture
4. expertise
5. advocacy
6. curator
7. aspects
8. sector
Math Activity for Elementary School: (MA.3.AR.1.2) Solve one and two-step real-world problems involving any of four operations with whole numbers.
Study the Calendar of Events on page B-2 and calculate the answers to the following questions.
1. How many religious activities and outdoor activities are there all together?
2. How many more festivals are there than learning and educational activities?
3. What percentage of the events are plays or musical events?
4. What percentage of events are art events?
5. How many more outdoor activities are there than Bingo activities?
6. How many food events and musical events are there all together?
Composition Activity for Elementary School: (ELA.10.C.3.1) Follow the rules of standard English grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling appropriate to grade level.
Read the article on pages A-1 and A-2 about the Tangerine Festival. Then, write an essay of at least 250 words about another popular festival here in Hernando County. Be sure to include the name of the festival, when and where it’s held and the purpose of the festival. This could be the Heritage Days festival, Art in the Park, the Will McLean Festival or any others. If you want to, you can write about more than one.
If you wish to submit any of your compositions from this week to the newspaper for us to consider publishing, please email to [email protected]. Be sure and include your name, age, grade level and school that you attend.