The Guessing Game. Use this game to point out prominent people in the news. Have your child read one or two short articles about people making headlines. List the characteristics of these people on a sheet of paper ahead of time. After your child has read the articles, read off your descriptions (or write them on a white board) and have your child guess who the description is referring to. Keep doing this for all of the characteristics on your list.
Acting Out. This game is interactive. After having your child read an article about a current event, give them the opportunity to act out the situation. At the end of their mini-play, make sure they can orally summarize the current event and what their actions represented.
Parent Actors. Pull out all the stops on this fun event. Parents dress up as a character or animal in the news with the use of costumes or makeup. Kids get a kick out of seeing adults act silly. Let them guess what person or animal you are by your actions. They will never forget what they learned in the news with this activity.
Current Events Collage. After your child has read about a current event, let him make a collage by finding pictures in old magazines that have to do with the story. He can cut out and glue the pictures in a sequencing order, or just make a collage of pictures that represent the news story.
Use the links provided below to find magazines that are specifically geared for children. These publications will make reading about current events more understandable, as they are written on particular grade levels.