This newspaper making lesson incorporates interdisciplinary elements and focuses on social skills such as collaboration and inquiry-based interactions. This lesson, which is intended to be set up at the beginning of the year or a unit and continue until the end of the year or unit, allows for a whole class to incorporate their own special flare to the paper, whether that is in the form of writing, photography, art, research, or questioning to find the scoop. The great thing about making a class/school newspaper is that there are many different platforms already made for easy access to start one; there are physical templates that can be ordered or made where students can see how newspapers were made before computers; there are electronic platforms that students can use to showcase their newspaper; and once students are familiar with the process or making, editing, and publishing a newspaper, this project cause be included for personal or group projects in class. 

If we reflect on what published newspapers include in our everyday lives (think New York Times, the SF Chronicle or even the Napa Valley Registrar), the majority of elements are writing, photography, art, and extras (games, interviews, reviews, etc.). However, within those elements, the writing, photography, art and extras all are about different subjects like news, stories, reviews, and more. So by translating that to the classroom, the classroom newspaper can be about anything decided by the editor (teacher) or the staff (students): personal class news, subject matter, or school-wide news, just to name a few. This project encapsulates this specific pedagogy.

Click on the picture to view the sample newspaper!

Setting up a newspaper template on a Google Doc versus on a Google Site is very different. While on a Doc, I remembered small details from my journalism course such as the symbol at the end of an article, the header, how to set up quotes and indicate them to pictures, and more. These are the small things that would have to be addressed after putting together the whole newspaper. That means after the idea process, the writing process, the editing process, and the design process. One thing that I should add to the lesson plan is to make sure that there are drafts of each process and checklists added so students can go through and help with finalizing everything.