Overview
Current events are an important part of any Humanities curriculum. But finding appropriately leveled news articles is too consuming for most teachers. Sure you can check out things like TIME For Kids, but what about current events or specific, narrow topics? Newsila appears to solve that problem!
Newsila lets you create a class or classes of students then assign articles to those students to read.
But that is not the best part.
Newsila, with the click of a button, also gives you reading level options for every article based on a Lexile scores. So, for one article, you can have five or more different reading levels. This means a grade 12 student and a grade five student can read the same article, but is designed for their own individual reading levels. So cool.
Sign up is easy with a Google account and there are options for you to receive a daily email with recommended articles based on your preferences.
Appropriate for Grades 3-12.
Concerns
Struggling to find a problem with it. The free version is good enough to get things rolling.
Sample Uses
If you do current events in your class, this is the go to resource for your students. Research as well. Students can look for contemporary articles on their topic, but sort it by reading level so they can understand it.
Do I plan to use it?
Yes! Will talk with the librarians too as this is such a great resource too.
Commitment and Learning Curve
Low to medium. It is easy to set up, but to use it with your students requires a change in how you teach. If it solves a big enough pain point for you, I bet you use it.
Best for ES MS or HS?
ES, MS and HS. It is designed to scale to all those age groups.
Cost
Free and paid. The ask you to contact them for a quote. The upgrade gives you stats, dashboard, etc., but the free version is great to get you started.
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