Asking the Right Questions

The BHS reporters have their first assigned story: a feature story.

Note to a non-class reader of this blog: Have a suggestion for a feature? Please hit the comment button so that we might discuss your recommendation or stop by room 16.

I decided to start with this type of story for two reasons:

1. Increases comfort levels in this class to be able to talk with someone you know. Just a good place to start the journalistic learning process.
2. Having a database of features makes good filler also! Sorry...just a touch of realilty there for those of us who understand the dreaded "d" word...yes, that's it...DEADLINE! (That will definitely be another blog topic later on!)

Now to the interviews...please remember these tips:

1. Ask open-ended questions. "Yes" or "no" answers do not make for a very long story!
2. Should you ask a "yes" or "no" question, tag on a "Why? or "Why not?"
3. Compose six-to-eight questions. Do not ask so many questions that the interviewee has to spend a grand amount of time on this but enough, of course, that you have adequate information for your story to have some depth.
4. Leave ample space for answering these questions. (Due to time-constraints, many of our "interviews" are conducted by leaving questions in teachers' mailboxes or by asking the student to return the interviews within a day or two).
5. Note to teachers: Please return interviews as quickly as possible...remember these reporters' grades depend on the information they receive!
6. Complete the list of questions by giving the interviewee a chance to add any other comments or thoughts.

Again...thanks for your energy and your sincere dedication that I can already see shining brightly within this class! You are all definite keepers!

The New Additions Have Arrived

Since our last class meeting, our numbers have grown by two! I am very excited about the dynamics of this class!

Today, we debated, discussed, and then selected our first round of honored BHS persons to be featured in at least one of our three upcoming publications. The assignment was to then to take their assigned person(s) and develop a slant (or two or three) for us to deliberate on when we next meet on Friday.

Only two days of class...and, oh, the progress, we have made. Just ask them!

The Energy

Thanks to the six young ladies enrolled in the newspaper class...I have very high hopes of obtaining our goals to publish, publish, publish!

The Spirit of the Pioneer, Batesville High School's newspaper, will be published in three formats this year...wow!

1. Online at bhspioneerspirit.wordpress.com: to be updated as stories are completed
2. E-newsletter...hopefully bi-weekly
3. In the "old-fashion" format...hard-copy (too many skills skipped if this method is not also utilized)

Here's to the six who will make this all happen! Thanks for being a part of this staff!