Journalism
By Olga Kokino

Eighteen instructional units and ready-to-use lessons that cover a full-year of journalism fundamentals emphasizing the practical, how-to aspects of journalistic writing to help high school students understand concepts and develop skills in interpreting the media. In addition to providing helpful writing models and templates, the curriculum contains examples and exercises based on selections from top newspapers, the Los Angeles Times, and articles from the Poynter Institute.

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Practical Ideas for Teaching Journalism

This book was designed by master journalism teachers to give beginning teachers a helpful handing hand and to provide veteran teachers with new ideas. Its 138 lessons cover every phase of a school publication production. It can be used as a single source for a journalism class or as a supplement to any high school journalism text. An adviser can use its lessons from beginning to end, creating an entire course, or pick and choose among individual lessons.

Focus:
This is a "how-to" book for teachers, although worksheets for students are provided. It concentrates on teaching methods as well as subject matter. It tells teachers what to do and how to do it, what to say and what to write on the board, how to structure a lesson, what objectives to accomplish, what student input and outcomes to expect.

Adaptability:
Lessons can be adapted for a variety of situations: the semester beginning class, the yearlong introductory class, the class that puts beginners in with the production staff, even the experienced staff that needs sophisticated skills. Lessons will work with high or low ability students, with junior or senior high school students. Teaching methods and objectives meet state curriculum standards.

Style:
Several different lesson plans are provided to help you teach important topics. If you think one plan will not work with your class, simply pick another.

Special Features:
The book comes hole punched and perforated so you can remove any lesson for copying purposes, then store you favorite lessons in your own notebook. Each lesson provides quotations that enforce important points with memorable words. Post these quotes on bulletin and marker boards. An extensive appendix includes professional and school codes of ethical conduct, layout and typography terms, state laws and a useful bibliography. Especially useful may be the lessons, which teach important court decisions and legal concepts through docudrama and definition, charts and examples, and quizzes.

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