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Subjects

• Language Arts

Grades

• 3-5
• 6-8
• 9-12

Brief Description

Students invite a local newspaper reporter to speak to the class and write a newspaper-style article about the visit.

Objectives

• write a business letter and a thank-you letter to a reporter at local newspaper,
• develop questions to ask a newspaper reporter,
• use correct sentence structure, grammar, and spelling to write an article.

Keywords

newspaper, reporter, article

Materials Needed

• copies of a local newspaper
• computers with Internet access (optional)
• paper
• pens or pencils
• camcorder or tape recorder to record the visit (optional)

Lesson Plan

• Tell students that they are going to invite a reporter from a local newspaper to speak to the class.
• Have students study copies of your local newspaper, paying attention to the names of the reporters who write the articles. Ask them to choose one or more reporters to contact.
• Work together as a class to write the letter of invitation. If you have Internet access, you may want to send the letter to the newspaper via e-mail.
• Before the visit, have students brainstorm questions they would like to ask the reporter. Work together as a class to prepare the room for the visit (special decorations, refreshments, etc.).
• When the reporter arrives, ask permission to record the interview if you plan to do so. As the reporter answers each question, have students write down each answer.
• After the visit, have each student write a thank-you letter to the reporter. Tell students to include sentences describing what they learned and what they enjoyed most about the visit.
• Have each student compile the answers to the questions the class posed to the reporter. Help each student write a newspaper-style article about the reporter. Send the completed articles to the reporter with the thank-you notes.

Assessment

Lesson Plan Source

Submitted By

Lois Lewis

National Standards

Language Arts:
NL-ENG.K-12.1
NL-ENG.K-12.4
NL-ENG.K-12.5
NL-ENG.K-12.6