Writing a News Report From Pre-Writing to Writing

Pre-Writing: Step #1 Brainstorm ideas for each of the 5W's (who, what, where, when, why) and how. If you are given a topic or headline, make sure your ideas are related to it. HeadlineVolunteer Students Improve School Grounds Who? -volunteer students (approximately 30 students) -student council (president: Steve Murphy) -supervising teacher (Tim McCarthy, Elizabeth Todd) -school principal (Lewis White) -woodworking teacher (Julie Brown) What? -improved school grounds -earned community hours -volunteered for two consecutive weekends When? -spring the snow was gone and the ground dry -two consecutive weekends in April Where? -St. Mark's Catholic High School in Russell, ON -in front of the school -green space next to the parking lot Why? -to make the school more attractive -to attract students -to create a green space -to accommodate classes How? -planted trees -added flower beds -built picnic tables -built benches

Pre-Writing: Step #2 Review your ideas, and highlight the most important ones. Try to select the most important idea from each of the 5W's and how. HeadlineVolunteer Students Improve School Grounds Who? -volunteer students (approximately 30 students) -student council (president: Steve Murphy) -supervising teacher (Tim McCarthy, Elizabeth Todd) -school principal (Lewis White) -woodworking teacher (Julie Brown) What? -improved school grounds -earned community hours -volunteered for two consecutive weekends When? -spring the snow was gone and the ground dry -two consecutive weekends in April Where? -St. Mark's Catholic High School in Russell, ON -in front of the school -green space next to the parking lot Why? -to make the school more attractive -to attract students -to create a green space -to accommodate classes How? -planted trees -added flower beds -built picnic tables -built benches

Writing: Step #1 Write your lead paragraph by inserting the highlighted ideas in your brainstorm into 1 or 2 sentences. Remember that your lead paragraph should give your reader a good overview of the event you are describing. Volunteer Students Improve School Grounds For two consecutive weekends in April 2012, 30 students of St. Mark's Catholic High School in Russell, ON volunteered their time and energy to improve their school grounds. By building picnic tables and benches and planting flower beds and trees, these students are hoping to attract their peers to this beautiful new green space.

Writing: Step #2 Return to your brainstorm, and identify the next most important details that should be covered in your news report. Write a paragraph that include these details (see next slide for an example). HeadlineVolunteer Students Improve School Grounds Who? -volunteer students (approximately 30 students) -student council (president: Steve Murphy) -supervising teacher (Tim McCarthy, Elizabeth Todd) -school principal (Lewis White) -woodworking teacher (Julie Brown) What? -improved school grounds -earned community hours -volunteered for two consecutive weekends When? -spring the snow was gone and the ground dry -two consecutive weekends in April Where? -St. Mark's Catholic High School in Russell, ON -in front of the school -green space next to the parking lot Why? -to make the school more attractive -to attract students -to create a green space -to accommodate classes How? -planted trees -added flower beds -built picnic tables -built benches

Writing: Step #3 Insert a quotation from a person who is involved in the event you are describing. Preferably, you should quote a person who appears in the “Who?” section of your brainstorm. The green space, which is located next to the parking lot in front of the school, was designed by the school's student council, whose members also organized the volunteer students. "It was a total team effort. Everybody played a part in making the empty space in front of our school more attractive to students," said Steve Murphy, the Student Council President.

Writing: Step #4 Continue writing your news report by consulting your brainstorm for the next group of most important facts. Remember to cross out your facts as you use them in your news report. (This will eliminate any repetition.) HeadlineVolunteer Students Improve School Grounds Who? -volunteer students (approximately 30 students) -student council (president: Steve Murphy) -supervising teacher (Tim McCarthy, Elizabeth Todd) -school principal (Lewis White) -woodworking teacher (Julie Brown) What? -improved school grounds -earned community hours -volunteered for two consecutive weekends When? -spring the snow was gone and the ground dry -two consecutive weekends in April Where? -St. Mark's Catholic High School in Russell, ON -in front of the school -green space next to the parking lot Why? -to make the school more attractive -to attract students -to create a green space -to accommodate classes How? -planted trees -added flower beds -built picnic tables -built benches

Writing: Step #4 Try to add a quote in every other paragraph. As you write, insert new details (i.e., details that do not appear in your brainstorm) as you see fit. Lewis White, the school principal, hopes that the new green space will also be able to accommodate classes. "On nice days, an English class can read outside, or a Religion class can use the benches to hold a class discussion," said Mr. White. The benches, which are arranged in a circle around a young maple, were fabricated by Julie Brown's woodworking students. "I love the benches," said Stu Nickel, a STA student who volunteered over the weekend. "Yesterday, a group of us had lunch around the maple we planted." Students were visibly proud of their efforts and the result. Tim McCarthy and Elizabeth Todd, the teachers who supervised the volunteer students, were happy they could reward them with community hours they need to fulfill a graduation requirement. "Some of them earned up to 20 hours. It was a win-win situation," said Todd. STA's new green space is ready for use, and students are hoping Mother Nature will provide them with plenty of sunny days this spring.