EAST PRAIRIE, MO (KFVS)- East Prairie School Superintendent Scott Downing says a lot of students in his district are safer from tornadoes at school than at home, but a new tornado shelter that would be built by the Junior High would protect them from any tornado that's ever come through the area.

A new tornado shelter that would be built if voters approve a school bond issue next Tuesday would meet all FEMA requirements and be able to withstand wind speeds of 250 miles per hour, which is the same speed as an EF-5 tornado.

And Downing says students will be able to get to the shelter quickly.

"We know we can get all our high school and junior high kids in there in less than five minutes," he said.  "And with the staff members we have who are able to drive busses, we feel like we can get the entire student body and staff in there in less than fifteen minutes."

CHARLESTON, MO (KFVS) - The local newspaper can be used for many things, from wedding announcements to sports scores - and at Hearnes Elementary, can also be used for teaching.

Carla Kelly, fifth grade reading teacher, is using newspapers to teach her students the value of "informational text," a type of non-fiction or fact. 

Kelley's first lesson was on the parts of a paper and how to find information. The class will use news stories as writing prompts, search for context clues in the text, identify vocabulary words, and much more in the weeks to come.

According to Kelley, informational text is part of a major shift in today's Missouri Common Core Standards, which states that reading text will help students "be better readers in all content areas."