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Detail of front page of the Bisbee Daily Review, Oct. 19, 1911

Just One Day: Using a Newspaper Front Page as a Window to Inquiry and Research

Posted by: Cheryl Lederle

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This post is by Diana Laufenberg, Executive Director and Lead Teacher for Inquiry Schools
Students might be accustomed to reading pages from significant dates in history, but one day of news from a random day can provide many avenues for questioning and research. I would love to give this page to students and see what they could figure out in 30 minutes.

If I were still in the classroom I might use a randomizer to generate a date and a year between 1890-1960 and send the students into Chronicling America to see what the country was talking about that day.

  • Students could look through local, regional, or more nationally focused papers. They might nominate articles for most random story, biggest national impact, strangest reporting, a story about something still relevant today, a story about something completely irrelevant today, something connected to a topic studied, something or someone they’ve never heard about before, or most striking advertisement.
  • Students might choose one article and see what they could discover about the people or events featured in it.
  • One could also choose a day before or after something historic happened, ask students to see what else made the news that day, and discuss how newspapers (or any media) decide what to give space to.
  • The Chronicling America homepage features a “100 years ago today” carousel from which students might select a paper. They might even work in pairs or small groups to compare what newspapers from different parts of the country reported. If time permits, they might use the “About this title” link at the top of the newspaper page to contextualize their thinking by learning about the newspaper.
Page detail to show “About this title” link.

The ability to practice research skills, questioning and expand understanding of the past is vast. The resources of the Library of Congress make something like this possible, engaging and relevant. If you try this with your students, let us know what they discover!

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Comments (4)

  1. Stacie Seifrit-Griffin says:

    This blog post is full of great ideas! When our son was in elementary school, we had him do similar projects. It was how he earned allowance. My husband would give him a significant date to research and then our son had to make a presentation on the information he gathered. His first project was on the Olympics. We had books, newspapers and access to the internet. I fondly remember him searching through the pantry to find a can to perfectly trace circles to make the five rings. He was six.

    To our son, it was like a scavenger hunt for information. It not only taught him creative researching skills, but also public speaking when he formally presented his findings.

    Our son’s high school years were spent as the President of the Model UN team (more research and public presentation), host of the morning announcements, among others. I truly believe his confidence to research and present is what go him through the pandemic. He was comfortable learning on his own.

    He is now 21 and studies at the University College Dublin. He is a writer for the newspaper and works as a community engagements leader for the University Student Union.

    Your blog post took me down memory lane, but I hope it reinforces that your suggestions are spot on.

  2. Cheryl Davis says:

    When I taught high school, I would collect significant newspaper first pages to keep for years until they became conversation starters for future classes to see. Now it is great to have Chronicling America as a research tool for students to be able to read and analyze papers of the past. Your “Just One Day” is an outstanding example of how educators can use Chronicling America to engage and to spark inquiry. Thank you, Diana!

  4. Diana Laufenberg says:

    Stacie – Thank you so much for taking time to share that wonderful arc of inquiry that worked so well in your family. Such a powerful example of the role of curiosity, that leads to research that leads to communication and on and on. Love it!

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