News in Russian

News in Russian: Weekly Mini-Project and Small-Group Debates

Proficiency level: Novice-High to Intermediate-Low/Mid (1st–2nd year Russian)

Theme and Class Topic: contemporary media; identifying main ideas in short authentic texts

Communicative Objectives
Students will be able to:

• summarize a short authentic source in Russian

• ask and answer simple discussion questions, express basic opinions

• participate in a small-group conversation

Grammatical / Linguistic Objectives
Reinforces:

• present and past tense verbs, high-frequency topic vocabulary

• connectors (и, но, потому что)

• opinion markers (я думаю, мне кажется)

Learning Goals

• build confidence with authentic input

• practice extracting main ideas

• encourage independent engagement with Russian media

Expected Outcomes
By the end of the semester, students can:

• understand the main idea of a short authentic text or clip

• summarize it in 3–5 simple sentences

• ask one discussion question

• participate in a brief group exchange

• express a simple opinion using familiar structures

Materials: short authentic texts chosen by students

Procedure and Course Integration

In beginning and intermediate Russian courses, this weekly activity reinforces interpretive and interpersonal skills alongside units on daily life, campus, and media. Once a week, students choose a brief authentic source (a subtitled video, short article, or blog post) and prepare a 4–10 sentence summary (depending on the level), one discussion question, and new vocabulary. In class, small-group conversations rotate, focusing on meaning rather than accuracy, and one topic serves as the basis for a short guided debate. Because the routine repeats all semester, students gain regular low-stakes practice with real-world input and gradually build confidence for oral assessments and real Russian outside the textbook.

Assessment: formative: completion-based submission, participation rubric, optional mid-semester portfolio