Kids chapter story begins next week

The Central Kentucky News-Journal's younger readers will soon have a chance to learn about our 33rd U.S. President on the Just For Kids page.

Beginning Jan. 24, "A Familiar Face," an eight-chapter serial story, will follow a boy named Scotty Brown as he learns about Harry S. Truman.

A homework assignment leads Scotty to discover "A Familiar Face" in the pages of history and to learn about the role a boy from Missouri had as an adult in international decisions of humanitarian aid, war and racial equality.

Scotty takes from the lesson a new appreciation for the top job in America and the realization that even he could someday be President of the United States.

The story is written by Kay Hively and illustrated by Billie Gofourth-Stewart. Both are from Neosho, Mo.

Hively's historical fiction stories have been produced and distributed by the Missouri Press Foundation since 2001 and have been published in hundreds of newspapers worldwide. Both Hively and the Missouri Press Foundation have donated their efforts to the National Newspaper Association for this project.

Each chapter features "Things to think about and do," exercises that test the reader's memory and critical thinking.

Aimed at elementary students, a teacher's guide is also available that offers additional classroom exercises such as response items and performance tasks. The questions are aligned to Kentucky Core Content for Assessment. The questions are suitable for most elementary students and can be adapted to other grade levels.

The guide may be accessed at http://www.kypress.com/readingacrossky/pdf/teachersguide.pdf

The eight-chapter will be published each Thursday on the Central Kentucky News-Journal's Just For Kids page.