How to Write a Newspaper Article
By Kasey Kaisershot
Information About Lesson
 Characteristics:
 Traditional 4th grade classroom
 Public elementary school
 25 students
 Learning environment:
 Computer lab at school
 Each student at his/her own computer
Objectives
 Given information about newspapers, students will be able to
define the purpose of the newspaper correctly.
 Given information about newspapers , students will be able
to define the steps used to write a newspaper article
correctly.
 Students will be able to identify parts of a newspaper with
100% accuracy when given a template.
Buttons
Click this button when
you want to go on to the
next page.
Click this button when
you want to go to the
last page.
Click this button when
you want to go to the
main newspaper screen.
Click this button when
you want to review
before trying the check
point question again.
Click this button when
you want to go to the
checkpoint questions.
Click this button when
you want to review the
videos.
Hi! I’m Nick the newspaper!
I’m going to guide you through
this activity and teach you what a
newspaper is, and even how to
write an article of your own!
Let’s begin by
learning what a
newspaper is.
What is a newspaper?
A newspaper is a collection
of articles meant to inform
readers about important
topics. Many are published
daily. There are local
newspapers as well as
national ones.
Fun fact: The people
who write newspaper
articles are called
journalists.
Now that you know what
a newspaper is, we’ll
look at the different parts
of a newspaper.
Parts of a newspaper
Click on the arrows
to learn more
about the different
parts of the
newspaper!
Newspaper Title
The newspaper title is the name
of the newspaper that you’re
reading. Some common examples
are The NewYork Times and the
Chicago Tribune.
Click on the newspaper
button to go back and
learn about the other
parts!
Headline
The purpose of the headline is to let the reader
know what the article they’re reading is about.
A headline contains at least one noun and verb.
Only the first letter of the first word and proper
nouns are capitalized
It is usually in a larger font and also bolded.
Click on the pencil
button to learn more
about the headline!
Example
An example headline for a man who won the lottery might read:
Man wins millions in Indiana lottery
Notice that the headline tells
the reader what the article will
be about and is also in a large,
bold font.
Now you try!
Pretend you are a journalist writing an article about a new science
club being started by some students at your school. Write a
headline for this situation. Make sure you remember the rules for
making a headline!
Articles
The articles are the most
important parts of the
newspaper. They contain the
important facts and information
the readers need to know. There
are many different articles that
make up the newspaper.
Click on the newspaper
icon below to learn more
about the different parts
of the newspaper!
Lead
The lead is the first sentence
or two of an article. Leads
catch the attention of the
reader and answer the who,
what, where, when, why,
and how of the article.
Click on the pencil
button to learn more
about the lead!
Example
An example lead for a man who won the lottery might be:
“After playing the Indiana lottery for the past 10 years,
Indianapolis resident John Smith won $10 million on Monday
after buying a ticket at his local gas station.”
You’re doing
great! Keep
learning!
Now you try!
Pretend you are a journalist writing an article about a new
science club being started by some students at your school.
Write a lead for the article using the guidelines for writing a
lead. (You can make up names, dates, etc.)
Photo & Caption
The photo is a picture that
represents what the article is
about.
The caption describes what is
happening in the picture.
Click on the newspaper
icon below to learn more
about the different parts
of the newspaper!
Checkpoint!
It’s checkpoint time!
Checkpoints are mini quizzes
to see what you’ve learned so
far in the lesson. Click the
pencil to move on.
Checkpoint #1
What question does the lead answer about the article?
Who
b. When
c. Why
d. All of the above
a.
Checkpoint #1
Good job! The lead
also answers what,
where, and how.
Checkpoint #1
While the lead does
answer that question,
there is a better answer.
Click the pencil to review
the lead section again.
Lead
The lead is the first sentence
or two of an article. Leads
catch the attention of the
reader and answer the who,
what, where, when, why,
and how of the article.
Click on the pencil
button to learn more
about the lead!
Example
An example lead for a man who won the lottery might be:
“After playing the Indiana lottery for the past 10 years,
Indianapolis resident John Smith won $10 million on Monday
after buying a ticket at his local gas station.”
Click the flag to
return to the
checkpoint question.
Checkpoint #1
What is the correct format for a headline?
a.
Smaller font and underlined
b. Larger font and bolded
c. Italicized and bolded
d. Larger font and underlined
Checkpoint #1
A headline should be
bolded and in a
larger font to get
the attention of the
readers.
Checkpoint #1
Click the pencil button to
go back and review
headlines.
Headline
The purpose of the headline is to let the reader
know what the article they’re reading is about.
A headline contains at least one noun and verb.
Only the first letter of the first word and proper
nouns are capitalized
It is usually in a larger font and also bolded.
Click on the pencil
button to learn more
about the headline!
Example
An example headline for a man who won the lottery might read:
Man wins millions in Indiana lottery
Notice that the headline tells
the reader what the article will
be about and is also in a large,
bold font. Click the flag to
return to the checkpoint
question.
Now that we have a background
on newspapers, let’s learn how
to write an article. There are 4
steps to follow.
STEP 1-Brainstorm
Before writing your article, you
need to decide what to write
about!
STEP 1-Brainstorm
Ask yourself these questions…
…Then pick your topic!
Now you try!
Brainstorm a couple of possible topics you could write an
article about. Write them below:
1.
2.
3.
STEP 2-Research
After you’ve picked your
topic, think about what
you already know about
it. Then, do some
background research on
it so you have facts to use
in your article.
Now You Try!
Write some important things you already know about the topic
you chose earlier.
STEP 3-Interview
Interviewing people is very
important for the article
writing process. This is how
you get most of your
information.
Click the pencil for some tips
for interviewing:
Interviewing Checklist
 Talk to at least 2 or 3 people
to get information for your
article.
 Make sure you have a pencil
or pen and a notebook to
record the person’s answers.
 Introduce yourself to the
person you’re interviewing
and tell him/her what your
article is about.
 Ask the person questions
that answer who, what,
where, when, why, and
how.
 Your questions should all
relate to the article topic.
 Thank the person for their
time when the interview is
over.
Watch this video to know the
correct way to interview
someone.
Now You Try!
Make a list of 2 people you could interview for your article and
3 questions for each.
Person 1:
Person 2:
Questions:
Questions:
Checkpoint #2
Watch the following
videos and decide what
the interviewer did
wrong in each one.
Checkpoint #2
Checkpoint #2
1.
What did the interviewer do wrong?
She forgot to bring a pencil and paper
b. She forgot to introduce herself.
c. She didn’t ask any questions.
d. All of the above
a.
The interviewer should
have brought a pencil
and paper to record the
person’s answers.
Click on the movie reel
picture below to watch
the video again and try
the question again.
Checkpoint #2
Checkpoint #2
Checkpoint #2
2. What did the interviewer do wrong?
She forgot to introduce herself
b. She forgot to bring a pencil and paper
c. She didn’t ask questions relating to the article topic
d. Both B and C
a.
The interviewer should
ask questions about the
topic instead of random
questions.
Click on the movie reel
picture below to watch
the video again and try
the question again.
Checkpoint #2
STEP 4-Writing the Article
Now that you’ve picked a
topic, researched it, and
interviewed people,
you’re ready to write your
article!
Here are some things to remember when writing your article:
 Make sure to start off
 Use quotes that you
with a lead.
Put the information in
order from the most
important to least
important.
got from your
interviews.
Only use the most
important information
you learned.
Let’s look at the following
article and practice what
we’ve learned! Read the
article and answer the
questions that follow.
Checkpoint #3
Bolivia's New Jazz Sensation Is Just Seven Years Old And Blind
By Meera Dolasia on October 17, 2012
Jose Andre Montano Baina is taking the Bolivian
and the world music scene by storm. He has already
performed in the some of the country's
top venues including the Legislative Palace and
alongside famous musicians like Bolivian rocker Glen
Vargas - What's so great about that? How about the
fact that Jose is just seven years old and, has no
vision!
The young musician began to show signs of
his incredible talent at the tender age of four when he
started playing the drums with a proficiency usually
displayed by artists three times his age. After
mastering them, he quickly moved on to the piano
and by the age of five had formed a jazz trio!
And, while the young boy knows every jazz song in
the book and can play them all with great ease and
confidence it is not the only kind of music he enjoys.
He also loves listening to blues, heavy
metal, tango, bolero and anything in between!
His extremely proud father is quick to admit that
he has nothing to do with his son's unusual talent. In
fact he didn't even know much about jazz until Jose
started to play. He believes the young boy is just born
with a 'music' chip inside him!
As for the young rising superstar? He leads a pretty
normal life despite all the fame. Just like the rest of
you he goes to school, does homework and yes, has
chores assigned to him as well!
Checkpoint #3
What was wrong with the article you just read?
There was no lead
b. There were no quotes
c. There was no headline
d. Nothing was wrong with it
a.
Checkpoint #3
The article would be
better if there were
quotes from either
the blind boy, his
father, or someone
else.
Checkpoint #3
Click the magnifying glass
to review how to write an
article and then try again.
Here are some things to remember when writing your article:
 Make sure to start off
 Use quotes that you
with a lead.
Put the information in
order from the most
important to least
important.
got from your
interviews.
Only use the most
important information
you learned.
Click on the flag to return
to the checkpoint question
to try again.
You’ve done an amazing job
learning about newspapers and
how to write articles. Now
there will be a short quiz to see
what you’ve learned. Good
luck!
Quiz
1. Label the different parts of the newspaper.
Quiz
2. Fill in the blank with the correct word:
A newspaper is a collection of ___________ meant to inform
readers about important topics.
Pictures
b. Poems
c. Books
d. Articles
a.
A newspaper is
made up of
different articles.
The correct answer
was letter d, articles.
Quiz
3. Which arrow points to the newspaper title?
That is the
newspaper title!
The correct answer
was letter A.
Quiz
4. True or false? If false, correct the underlined words to make
it true.
The pictures are the most important part of the newspaper.
True
b. False; pictures, least
c. False; articles, most
d. False; articles, least
a.
The articles are
very important to
a newspaper.
The correct answer
was letter c: False;
articles, most.
Quiz
5. Put the steps for writing an article in order:
Interview, brainstorm, research, write
b. Brainstorm, research, interview, write
c. Research, interview, write, brainstorm
d. Brainstorm, interview, research, write
a.
Follow these steps
whenever you’re
writing an article.
The correct answer
was letter b:
Brainstorm, research,
interview, write
Fantastic! You’ve completed
the lesson! Go to the next
slide to fill out and print your
certificate!
the How to Write a Newspaper lesson!
Classroom
Teacher
You’re done! It
was fun to learn
with you!