Assignment: The World

Now available to any classroom via Internet streaming on the World Wide Web. School subscriptions are just $10 per episode; $320 per year.

Assignment the World—Celebrating its 50th Season in 2008-09—the longest running children's program in North America.

www.atwonline.org

Assignment: The World is a weekly 15-minute update on global news created specifically for use in grades 4–7. Oral and written language, map skills, history, culture, math, and science concepts are all interwoven in the context of real world events.

Produced by WXXI in Rochester, NY, Assignment: the World is the longest running instructional television program in North America, now well into its fourth decade of production. Many PBS stations schedule the program for off-air record for teachers. Check with your local station to see if they offer this service, or contact AIT (info@ait.net) for information about ATW broadcasts.

In 2003, Assignment: The World launched on the World Wide Web, extending the use of this program to more classrooms than ever. Now, any classroom teacher can subscribe to this service directly, provided they have broadband access. New programs are posted each week on Thursday evenings, allowing teachers an opportunity to preview the program from home, so that they can plan classroom-viewing activities the next day. Programs are archived for a full year, allowing for quick review of stories that evolve over a period of time.

Student interaction is key to the instructional design of the program and contributes to its success. Teachers who use Assignment: The World quickly see how a program that is specifically created with curriculum standards and the target age level in mind can provide such a rich learning experience for viewers.