Using an inquiry approach to learning, the students worked together in small groups to make their own discoveries about what a newspaper is. They looked at a simple newspaper called West Coast Reader.
There was good discussion between group members, with students noticing that newspapers often have the following features:
- title
- date
- page numbers
- photos
- words (with titles being bigger, and stories being smaller)
- thin newsprint paper
- weather news
- sports news
- news about shows or movies
- comics
- news about the community or world
- reminders about upcoming events
- names of reporters
- word search or crossword puzzles or sudoku puzzles
When asked what is the purpose of newspapers during a class discussion, the children’s responses included:
- to tell us what is going on near us
- to give us information
My hope with this special newspaper project is for students to learn the power of communication, and to be personally invested in sharing the written word with their readers.
“I became a journalist to come as close as possible to the heart of the world.” ~ Henry Luce