Journalism

 Overview **Information** **skill** – Introduction to Journalism: how to write a news story.
 * Age** **Group** – for middle school and high school students
 * Duration** – Lesson may be continued from 1 to 4 weeks

These lessons are about journalism. Two lessons will be created; one for 6th grade and one for 12th grade students. You may download the the entire lesson plan document, or download the 6th and 12th grade lessons separately at the bottom of this page. Sixth grade students will have a brief overview of journalism and an opportunity to write their own news story. The accompanying activity will be to record their news story using a web cam or other digital media tool. The story will then be shared with the class using a projector or similar classroom computer tool. This will be an inquiry learning lesson and project based on standards from the [|Standards for the 21st-Century Learner] (AASL, 2007, PDF) and the [|Indiana Academic Standards]. The 12th grade students' learning experience will build upon what they have learned in earlier grades; previously learned writing skills and technology experiences. Both lessons will be similar in content and the activity will be news stories written by the students and shared using a communication tool such as the internet, or an audio or video recording. The skill focus will be on learning the elements of writing a news story, varying styles of writing, self-evaluation, and finally, using a technology tool to deliver a news product such as a video or audio recording of the student’s story. The concept focus will be on journalism by and for youth journalists; the importance of staying in touch with events in our surroundings, and how young journalists make an important contribution to the exchange of ideas and information in the world.
 * Inquiry Skill: **

Sixth grade students will learn basic concepts of journalism such as writing style or what makes a good story. They will read current events in the news, and explore news stories by and for other kids. They will then take the basics they have just learned and begin writing their own news story. Finally, they will record themselves reading or telling their story using a web cam or audio recorder.

The 12th grade students will go beyond the basics by combining their information literacy skills with critical thinking and technology skills to gather, evaluate, analyze, and research the information needed to complete their inquiry projects. This, according to Daniel Callison, is information fluency; applying information literacy, computer literacy, and critical thinking skills, across disciplines and academic levels, in order to address or solve problems (http://virtualinquiry.com/inquiry/inquiry5.htm). The skills introduced in the sixth grade lesson plan provide a foundation of writing skills and vocabulary, an overview of journalism as a career, an introduction to the research, organization, and transformation of information, and use of technology tools that will go into producing a recorded news story project. The lessons are based on inquiry learning concepts.
 * Lesson Comparison: **

According to Callison, the five interactive components of information inquiry are questioning, exploring, assimilation, inference, and reflection ( http://virtualinquiry.com/inquiry/inquiry3.htm ). These elements are present in both the 6th grade and the 12th grade lesson plans; students will read and question stories in the news, and they will observe and explore their surroundings to find topics for their own news stories which they will share with their peers. This foundation will provide the quality inquiry environment needed for the development of skills that will produce information fluency in students as they mature.

12th grade students will expand on previously learned skills. Their lesson may follow a similar format but they will expand on information literacy skills which combined will lead to information fluency. They will choose a writing style based on their previous learning experiences, they will use databases or professional journalism resources to search for information that will verify, complement, or otherwise back up their research, they will choose their method of communication, they will share their work with real world audiences through opportunities and resources on the web, and finally they will evaluate their own work and the work of their peers.

12th grade students will have already acquired analytical, critical, searching, reading, writing, and technology skills; they will now combine these tools using in-depth application of their skills, knowledge, and abilities, to create meaningful projects that demonstrate understanding and connection to the real world.

According to Karen Sheingold (1987), the inquiry process consists of asking a question, searching for information to address the question, making sense of the information, then developing a perspective, an understanding, or an answer to that question (as cited on http://virtualinquiry.com/inquiry/inquiry7.htm ). Sheingold describes a quality inquiry environment as follows: // Students have the opportunity to: // § // build on their existing knowledge and skills // § // select topics of interest. // § // explore a variety of resources (i.e., books, maps, primary source documents, websites, videos, audios, photographs). // § // select the best way to communication their findings. // § // share with real-world audiences. // § // be evaluated on both process and product. // § // evaluate themselves, their peers, their resources, and their teachers. ( // http://virtualinquiry.com/inquiry/inquiry7.htm ).

The journalism lesson plans are a perfect application for inquiry learning skills. Our 12th grade students will mature and move toward information fluency by working in a quality inquiry environment as Sheingold has described above.
 * Downloads: ||
 * [[file:journalism.pdf]] Entire Project 2 in .pdf format ||
 * [[file:Sixth Grade Lesson.pdf]] 6th Grade Lesson and Handouts ||
 * [[file:12th Grade Lesson.pdf]] 12th Grade Lesson and Handouts ||

**References: ** American Association of School Librarians, (2007). Standards for the 21st-Century Learner, downloaded from http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aaslproftools/learningstandards/AASL_Learning_Standards_2007.pdf Broussard, S. (n.d.). Opinion Writing. Accessed online and freely available from http://www.pageoneonline.net/ResourcesStudents.htm

Callison, D. and Preddy, L. (2006). //The Blue Book on Information Age Inquiry, Instruction and Literacy//, Libraries Unlimited, Westport, CN. Indiana Department of Education, (2009). Indiana Standards and Resources, accessed online February 23, 2009 from http://dc.doe.in.gov/Standards/AcademicStandards/resources.aspx

Nankani, S., (2008). [|New News Is Good News? //Exploring Digital Innovations in Journalism//] //,// New York Times Daily Lesson Plan, New York Times Learning Network. Retrieved online from http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/20081210wednesday.html?searchpv=learning_lessons

Thanks for a great lesson, Celia! I was so inspired that I made up one for fourth grade and my daughter is begging me to do it at school! Attached is the PDF and a sample JPG. Enjoy!
 * 4th Grade Journalism Lesson**

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 * __2nd Grade Addition__: Heath Allen Dearing**

This lesson will serve as a pre-introduction to journalism and some first tastes of the inquiry process from questioning to reflecting. It will still focus on the inquiry standard of 1.1.6 ((Read, view, and listen for information presented in any format (e.g., textual, visual, media, digital) in order to make inferences and gather meaning)) that is present in both the 6th and 12th grade lessons. It will also focus on using technology to present the findings. With 2nd graders some challenges are presented for these novices. Most second graders are able to read and write, but they are at very different levels of that basic information skill. This will be taken into account for this lesson. -

__Summary of Procedures:__ 1. Students will view an age-appropriate news programs from local and national news programs. They may also view school news programs like Channel One or a school production by the older grade levels.

2. Discuss the different organization of the news programs. As a class create a list of items the news programs had. Lead the students to notice specific elements like: Special Interest Stories, Weather, Traffic, Area News, and National News. (These will be the five categories students will use for their own production).

3. Split the students into five groups of about five students each. Assign each group a specific part of the last news programs shown. Tell them that they are going to watch it again and that each group should pay specific attention to the part of the program that they were assigned.

4. Student groups will then make a poster showing each piece of information given for their part (for example, the "weather" group will show the current weather, the day's forecast, the extended forecast, and any other weather related information in that segment). They should be able to split the segment up into five different parts (the teacher may need to guide them in finding five different parts). The poster will include pictures and short phrases to describe what's happening in each.

5. Students will be assigned to go home and find information regarding that day's news. They will be encouraged to ask parents to help them with sources like the newspaper, news programs, Internet news sites, or radio news to find one part of information for their group (for example, a student in the weather group might look for the day's weather while another student looks for the extended forecast). Students may bring a copy of their piece of information or notes (that parent's have helped with). However, the student will be expected to know (have memorized) their one piece of information.

6. The next day, students will watch the news program (or another one like it). They will again be encouraged to pay special attention to their segment. Then they will make a poster-script of how they will present their information. Each student will present their one piece of information. They will make the poster-script and then practice performing.

7. Each group will present their information of the news they found from the previous day. They will be videotaped in order by the teacher while the rest of the class watches.

8. The next day, the students will watch their broadcast (it could possibly be broadcast as a rerun news broadcast to the whole school) and complete a think-pair-share about what was the best about another groups performance and what they would change about their own performance the next time.

- This lesson will introduce the students to inquiry while also giving them a first glimpse at journalism. They will start by focusing on their one specific question. They will explore by having their parents help them find answers to their question. They assimilate by putting it all together in a poster-script with their groups. They will make inferences while applying their information to their presentation. And they will reflect by watching themselves perform and thinking about what they would do differently. Even though this is a very scripted inquiry lesson (as the students are given specific activities for each step), they will begin the process that will become more student-driven as they become "experts" in the higher grade levels.

