In addition to regular classroom subscriptions, NIE strives to provide Maine educators with timely and relevant special programs on topics like Maine history, geography, health, science, careers, government, character development, elections, technology and much more! Topics for each school year are chosen based on suggestions made by participating educators on the end-of-year teacher survey. Regular input from our NIE teachers helps us keep our program a meaningful and effective tool that will meet the needs of the teachers we serve. To sign up for these special programs, simply circle the respective program(s) on the NIE order form.    

So You Want to Grow Up?

“So You Want to Grow Up?” is a new NIE special program focusing on homeownership, the importance of credit, career choices, balancing a checkbook, investments, and much, much more!  This unique program will provide grade 9-12 students with both financial and life skills they can use the rest of their lives.  Using the Weekend edition of the Bangor Daily News, delivered each Monday, and a downloadable teacher’s guide, students will work through weekly lessons on various real life topics.

Citizenship Day: Kids Vote (September 17th)

Celebrate and educate your students about the political process with the Bangor Daily News special piece, Kids Vote.  This full page piece, published to commemorate Citizenship and Constitution Day, both celebrated on September 17th, will offer NIE activities on such topics as: Branches of the Government, What’s Your Ideology?, and Political Cartooning with George Danby.

Patriots 1st & 10 (September – January)

Using news stories by Bangor Daily News staff and Associated Press writers, students will learn and apply basic skills in math, history, geography, and language arts as they follow the team during the 2007 season.  A 30-page curriculum guide for grades 5-9 will provide teachers with trivia questions and classroom activities for each game played.  Newspapers will be delivered on the weekdays following game dates.

Ethnic Bangor: Rediscovering the People and Places of a Historic City (October)

The Bangor Daily News will publish a week-long series providing readers with an interactive look at Bangor in the 1800s.  An 1875 BirdsEye map of Bangor will encourage readers to find their own house or neighborhood and start exploring.  Downloadable PDF maps of historic walks readers can enjoy today will also be available online.  The series will be augmented daily with timelines and historic photographs that will tell the story of a growing city fueled by its ever-increasing immigrant population.

This keepsake feature will certainly compliment your Maine studies in the classroom for years to come. Participating teachers will receive additional resources and curriculum materials provided by NIE.  

Robyn Reports: The Nutty Neighborhood Block Party (October- November)

This 10-chapter serial story, written by Stacy Tornio, will be published in the Bangor Daily News on consecutive Wednesdays in October and November.  In “Robyn Reports”, a young Robyn, the force behind a weekly neighborhood newspaper, sets out to cover the neighborhood block party so they can write about it for the week’s edition.  The story takes place in one day, with each chapter focusing on an event at the block party and a related mystery.  The last chapter is “The Robyn Reports,” which reveals how Robyn and her friends covered the events of the day.  Participating teachers will receive a teacher guide containing follow up activities for each chapter.  (Learning/Interest Level: Grades K-5).

Geography Action Week – Asia (November)

NIE has once again teamed up with National Geographic and the Maine Geographic Alliance to present a 4-day Geography Action series.  This year GAW will be celebrated Tuesday, November 13 through Friday, November 16.  The 2007-08 GAW continent being celebrated is Asia.  The 4-day series will also feature a GIS technology activity on Wednesday, November 14th celebrating National GIS Day.    Special family events are also being scheduled at the Maine Discovery Museum to celebrate GAW.  Teacher packets with activities, classroom goodies and resources will be made available to participating teachers.

FastCar Geography (February – May)

NASCAR automobile racing is the fastest growing sport in the United States.  So this year, NIE is offering FastCar Geography, a 15-week special program based on the NASCAR schedule.  Using news stories by Bangor Daily News staff, Associated Press writers and a 45-page program guide, students will learn US geography by following the weekly travels of the 43 drivers from their hometowns to each fender-bender race destination.  A 14-page math supplement is included.

2008 NIE Week – March 24-28, 2008

Celebrate NIE and join us for special in-paper activities guaranteed to excite and instruct throughout the entire month of March!  Note: Student works will be published in March, but the deadlines for participation are much earlier. Keep checking your mailbox and the NIE website for details and updates. (Learning/Interest Level: All Grades)

Grades K-12 – Saturday Scavenger Challenge

(Using the Saturday, March 22nd edition, delivered to classrooms on Monday, March 24.)

Grades K-2—Drawing Contest: Selected entries to be published in the BDN every Wednesday during NIE Month.)

Student-Created Supplement- Published on Wednesday, March 26, 2008 will

include the winners from the following student contests:

• Grades 3-6 - "Story Without an Ending"
• Grades 7-12 - Editorial Cartoons and/or Written Editorials
• Grades 6-12- Design-an-Ad

Global Warming (April)

In observance of Earth Day, NIE will present a 5-day, in-paper series on earth’s changing climate and the important issue of global warming.  Topics to be covered include: the greenhouse effect, effects on our world, current headline makers, and ways you can help.  With quizzes, paper activities, and more, this special Earth Day series is sure to get students involved and thinking about the effects their actions have on our environment.