Website review by Patricia Monticello Kievlan, Common Sense Education | Updated November 2017
Xyza: News For Kids
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Xyza: News for Kids

Subscription-based, kid-friendly news site keeps kids up-to-date

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Grades
5–9
Subjects & Skills
English Language Arts, Social Studies, Critical Thinking
Great for
Media Literacy, Evaluating Media
Price:  Free to try, Paid
Platforms:  Website
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Take a look inside

5 images
Xyza is a news website aimed at elementary and middle school kids.
Brief stories explore topics from science to the arts to current events.
Once kids create an account, they can choose their favorite news topics to customize the site.
There's also a Junior Reporter Program available, which lets kids write and submit their own stories.
There are several subscription levels available, including options for receiving print copies of the news stories.

Pros: Approachable language and tons of topics appeal to a range of interests and reading levels.

Cons: Stories aren't especially deep or detailed, and they're missing authorship info and classroom support.

Bottom Line: It's a useful starting point to spark interest in the news and build awareness of current events, but not as ideal for teaching media literacy skills.

How Can I Teach with This Tool?

Most of Xyza's short articles are at a middle school reading level, and they can be used to consistently engage reluctant readers on subjects that interest them, like science, technology, or sports. Since there's limited free access, teachers will likely want to use their own account to print articles out to share with their classes. Many Xyza stories end by posing a question; use these prompts as a starting point for an in-class discussion that helps gauge reading comprehension and helps students grapple with important issues. Students could also access Xyza on a classroom computer station, find something they find interesting, and then write and share weekly critical responses to news articles that interest them. As an extension, challenge students to find articles related to their Xyza articles from a curated set of trustworthy news sources. What new info do these related articles provide? Finally, teachers could lean into the fact that Xyza articles usually don't cite an author or a source. Talk with students about how they can determine the reliability of a story and how they can investigate online to learn more; check out our News and Media Literacy Toolkit for resources that can help.

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Put this tool into practice:
Standards:

Xyza News for Kids is a subscription-based website that features kid-appropriate news articles on a range of timely topics. Users create a free trial account (kids will need permission of a parent) and then select news topics they'd like to read (choices include science, technology, world, and government) and whether they would like to browse the website online or receive a snail mail or email newsletter. Kids can also become "Junior Reporters" after a 30-day free trial that features a limited number of daily articles. Subscriptions range from $15 to $50 annually or in three- or six-month intervals. While the site is tuned to parents and at-home use, teachers can create an account and then share the resources with their students. 

Xyza's goals are admirable; it's important to encourage kids to get in the habit of reading about current events and issues, and it's convenient that kids can sign up for an email newsletter to get a more customized feed of news stories that match their interests. Purely as a reading platform, Xyza is an option teachers will want to consider, given the elegant design of the site and the wide range of interesting articles on offer. However, the articles and features of this site, while great for developing a passion for reading and news, aren't as great of a match for developing strong media literacy skills. There aren't classroom-specific resources like discussion guides (although there are some question prompts), lessons, or adjustable reading levels. Moreover, most articles don't feature an author or a source, so it's difficult to understand where these stories come from and who wrote them -- whether from Xyza staff, journalists, or even kids, since there's a Junior Reporter program. (This Junior Reporter program, however, could be useful for teachers looking for authentic writing opportunities for news-junky students.) Plus, while it's good to connect kids to stories that match their interests, teachers will want to emphasize that students shouldn't limit their reading and information intake only to things they already know and like.

Overall Rating
Engagement

With fun language and kid-friendly topics, this is an appealing way to get elementary and middle school students engaged with the news. 

Pedagogy

While the site's editors seem to be choosy about the stories that appear on the site, there's no author or source information, both of which are key to helping kids build news literacy.

Support

It's great that you can choose to get your news via a web browser, your email, or a paper newsletter. Classroom support resources for teaching specific stories, or using the site, would be helpful.

Common Sense reviewer
Patricia Monticello Kievlan Foundation/nonprofit member
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Key Standards Supported

Reading Informational Text

  • RI.5.6

    Analyze multiple accounts of the same event or topic, noting important similarities and differences in the point of view they represent.

  • RI.5.7

    Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem efficiently.

  • RI.5.8

    Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text, identifying which reasons and evidence support which point(s).

  • RI.5.9

    Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably.

  • RI.5.10

    By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 4–5 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

  • RI.6.7

    Integrate information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words to develop a coherent understanding of a topic or issue.

  • RI.6.8

    Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and evidence from claims that are not.

  • RI.6.9

    Compare and contrast one author’s presentation of events with that of another (e.g., a memoir written by and a biography on the same person).

  • RI.6.10

    By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 6–8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

  • RI.7.6

    Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author distinguishes his or her position from that of others.

  • RI.7.7

    Compare and contrast a text to an audio, video, or multimedia version of the text, analyzing each medium’s portrayal of the subject (e.g., how the delivery of a speech affects the impact of the words).

  • RI.7.8

    Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient to support the claims.

  • RI.7.9

    Analyze how two or more authors writing about the same topic shape their presentations of key information by emphasizing different evidence or advancing different interpretations of facts.

  • RI.7.10

    By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 6–8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

  • RI.8.6

    Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author acknowledges and responds to conflicting evidence or viewpoints.

  • RI.8.7

    Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using different mediums (e.g., print or digital text, video, multimedia) to present a particular topic or idea.

  • RI.8.8

    Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; recognize when irrelevant evidence is introduced.

  • RI.8.9

    Analyze a case in which two or more texts provide conflicting information on the same topic and identify where the texts disagree on matters of fact or interpretation.

  • RI.8.10

    By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction at the high end of the grades 6–8 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

  • RI.9-10.6

    Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how an author uses rhetoric to advance that point of view or purpose.

  • RI.9-10.7

    Analyze various accounts of a subject told in different mediums (e.g., a person’s life story in both print and multimedia), determining which details are emphasized in each account.

  • RI.9-10.8

    Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false statements and fallacious reasoning.

  • RI.9-10.9

    Analyze seminal U.S. documents of historical and literary significance (e.g., Washington’s Farewell Address, the Gettysburg Address, Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms speech, King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”), including how they address related themes and concepts.

  • RI.9-10.10

    By the end of grade 9, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 9–10 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

  • RI.11-12.6

    Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text in which the rhetoric is particularly effective, analyzing how style and content contribute to the power, persuasiveness or beauty of the text.

  • RI.11-12.7

    Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words in order to address a question or solve a problem.

  • RI.11-12.8

    Delineate and evaluate the reasoning in seminal U.S. texts, including the application of constitutional principles and use of legal reasoning (e.g., in U.S. Supreme Court majority opinions and dissents) and the premises, purposes, and arguments in works of public advocacy (e.g., The Federalist, presidential addresses).

  • RI.11-12.9

    Analyze seventeenth-, eighteenth-, and nineteenth-century foundational U.S. documents of historical and literary significance (including The Declaration of Independence, the Preamble to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address) for their themes, purposes, and rhetorical features.

  • RI.11-12.10

    By the end of grade 11, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 11–CCR text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

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