opportunity to push yourself as a writer and to explore topics that most interest you . Mini lessons each day will introduce you to the best work in the field . Additionally , for at least part of each class , you will be working in a Media Lab environment on your individual work . Over the course of a year you will have the chance to create : features , hard news , reviews , captions , opinion columns , blog writing , humor columns , letters to the editor , and photo stories .
Feature Writing ( 0.5 credit ) ( alternate years , offered ‘ 19- ’ 20 ) Grade 10 , 11 , 12 with priority given upper grade level students
Feature stories give newspapers and magazines their dynamism and flavor . Students in this workshop will explore feature writing techniques and philosophies , including sliceof-life , interview , profile , and analysis and insight . Students will write every week for critique by class members , with the goal of publishing the stories they write .
Students learn the fundamental skills of a global journalist , including identifying and researching a story , making an effective pitch , doing the groundwork for reporting in a foreign country , and using reporting to craft a powerful story .
Together , we will review the basics for writing and reporting : interviewing , gathering information , drafting , revising , and fact checking . We will discuss freelancing for newspapers , magazines , professional publications , and websites , as well as a working with multimedia . Guest speakers include several successful freelance journalists and professional writers . The course requires regular writing assignments , culminating in a final project that should be suitable for publication .
News Writing ( 0.5 credit ) ( alternate years , offered ‘ 18- ’ 19 ) Grade 10 , 11 , 12 with priority given upper grade level students
This one semester course is designed to give students an indepth experience in developing , writing , and publishing traditional news stories . These stories typically deal with local politics , interesting or provocative criminal cases , community events or organizations , and international events that are connected to the area of the world where the class is taught . Students will be expected to develop the stories quickly and produce accurate , interesting , and focused stories . The work produced in this class may be published in one of the school ’ s news publications , online , or perhaps with a local media company .
Radio / Audio Journalism ( 0.5 credit ) ( alternate years , offered ‘ 18- ’ 19 ) Grade 10,11 , 12 with priority given upper grade level students
This journalism-based course provides students with the opportunity to have their voice streamed live via the Internet . This is a creative course that offers hands-on experience behind the microphone , and it will help a student to develop their journalism skills while running a radio show . Whether it ’ s talk , music , entertainment , politics , interview , or sports , the topics are virtually endless . The class will focus on content generation , research , writing , and collaborative creativity .
Sports Journalism ( 0.5 credit ) ( alternate years , offered ‘ 19- ’ 20 ) Grades 10 , 11 , 12
Sports are part of the fabric of American culture . Thousands of lucky souls report on sports for a living ; this is your chance to start that process . Sports writing , blogging , photography and broadcasting are just a part
www . thorntonacademy . org of sports journalism . Technology offers changes every day in the art of sports journalism , and as part of this class you can keep up ! As a journalist you will report on Thornton Academy ’ s rich tradition of sports success , cover games and tell the stories behind the games . The content produced will be part of a new blog on Thornton Academy activities and athletics . Students will learn about writing , photography and broadcasting sports by getting hands-on lessons in each field . Several professionals in the sports journalism world will visit during the semester to provide first hand information about this dynamic medium . A strong interest in sports and interest in at least one of the three major components of the class is strongly recommended .
Technical Writing ( 0.5 credit ) Grade 10 , 11 and 12
This course is designed to develop and improve students ’ technical writing skills , and introduce the technology used in the workplace today . Students will focus on the production of material that uses all of their creative energy , and channel those creative ideas into projects that match their interests . Reflective of the demands of today ’ s workplace , emphasis is placed on the selection and organization of technical data for presentation to a variety of audience , in a multitude of ways . Students will : create new websites , learn the basics of digital and video editing , learn to embed audio and publish articles and information ( as writers and bloggers do today ), create real-time links to collected data , answer proposals and create marketing material for real companies and real products . In many ways , this class will focus on the writing that is done on a daily basis in the digital world around us , writing that is not limited to text .
43