A student speaks or reads something at the start of each period. They prepare it beforehand and can use one of these sources. (establish that anything presented must be "family show" material)
Magazines, Newspapers, Internet - anecdotes and short pieces from Readers Digest Magazine or Internet - Editorials from newspaper, magazines or by the students - Play, Movie, Concert Reviews in newspapers - agree or disagree - News of the Weird from Uptown Magazine or the Internet
- read/or report and comment on current news stories - Advice columns - The student reads a published question and the class suggests answers. The student then reads the "official" answer
- Statistics from the Index in Harpers Magazine (also in book form)
a student asks the class to guess some of the statistics.
Books Some books may go out of print but new ones are always coming out on these topics. Librarians and booksellers may have suggestions.
Humour and Quote Books - witty quotes are more interesting to kids
- 637 Best Things Anybody
Ever Said, ed. Robert Byrne Atheneum 5 vol
- Peter's Quotations
ideas for our time, L. Peter Bantam Book (witty)
- Letterman's Top
Ten Lists - there is a book collection
Facts and Records
- Isaac Assimov's
Book of Facts
- Far Out Facts by
the National Geographic Society
- The Book of Answers;
New York Public Library's most unusual and entertaining questions, Prentice
Hall Press
- The Top Ten of
Everything by Russell Ash, Reader's Digest Press
- The Guinness Book
of World Records
Inspirational/Literary
- Anecdotes from
Chicken Soup From the Soul
- The Little Brown
Book of Anecdotes by Clifton Fadiman, Little Brown
Odd News, Strange Stories
- News From the Fringe;
weird people and times, J. Kohut, Plume Book
- Bloopers, Botches
and Blunders by Allan Zullo Troll Publishers
- Ripley's Believe
It or Not A Pocket Book
- Incredible Coincidences
by Allan Vaughn Ballantine Books
- Urban myths on
Internet
Interesting Ideas
- Dictionary of Symbols
or Illustrated Encyclopedia of Symbols
- What Your Dreams
Mean, Allan Davis or Dream Dictionary, Tony Crisp
- Improve Your IQ
by Glen Wilson, Signet Books
- Book of Questions,
Gregory Stock PHD- student asks a moral question
- Wanted Words ed
Jane Farrow (invented words from CBC listeners)
- the student reads the list out of order and the class judges which they like
best. Then the student discloses the book's official choice