THE NEWS REPORT Success Criteria Created by A. Henley and D. Simnett

LEARNING GOALS I am able to: 1) Identify the criteria necessary for writing a successful News Report 2) Rank a news report based on success criteria and OSSLT’s rubric

LITERACY TUESDAY TASK: Please read the student example of a Code 60 news report – it is the first news report on the handout. This example will be referred to throughout the slides because it scored the top mark (60/60) for content. The news report is scored out of 60 for content and 40 for conventions. This activity will focus on content.

SUCCESS CRITERIA # 1 CREATE A TOPIC SENTENCE WITH AT LEAST 4 W’S  The purpose of a news report is to give information about the picture and headline provided  The first sentence should give as much basic information as possible  Answer the Who, What, Where, and When questions (the Why and How questions are answered later in the news report.)

SUCCESS CRITERIA # 1 CREATE A TOPIC SENTENCE WITH AT LEAST 4 W’S For example: On Tuesday, March 30 th, a snowstorm hit the southern coast of Ontario, shutting down many of the companies. When: Tuesday, March 30 th What: Snowstorm Where: South coast of Ontario Who: companies Why: ?? How: ??

SUCCESS CRITERIA # 2 INCLUDE QUOTATIONS  Ask yourself: If you were to interview someone on the scene, what would he/she say?  Provide an eye-witness account of the event  Use the witness and/or expert to provide specific details  Try to fill up the space provided

SUCCESS CRITERIA # 2 INCLUDE QUOTATIONS For example: 1) Weather official Mary Kate says “Canada can be unpredictable but we weren’t expecting this huge amount this late in the year”. 2) “The problem is that we weren’t even worried about it so we were very unprepared. We actually didn’t have our equipment handy when we first heard about it” says Mahad, one of the regions experts in snow management. 3) “The depth of 170cm of snow is the most shocking snow disaster we have ever had since 1938” says Old Jack, one of the senior citizens. 4) The mayor of Toronto declared this day “zero day” since nothing could get down. “I guess this is a wake-up call that we need to always be prepared for snow”, he said.

SUCCESS CRITERIA 3 USE THIRD PERSON  Don’t use ‘I’, ‘my’ or other first person terms  You are reporting on an event as an outsider – your task is to state what has happened or is seen  Do not include your personal opinion; a statement from an eye-witness can provide personal accounts

SUCCESS CRITERIA 3 USE THIRD PERSON Instead of: I was advised… or We were advised… Use: Students were advised… Don’t Use: I was surprised by how much snow there was. Use: Students were surprised by the amount of snow. Don’t Use: I thought that it would melt in an hour. Use: A city official stated, “I think the snow will melt in an hour”.

SUCCESS CRITERIA 4 RELATE THE ARTICLE TO HEADLINE AND PICTURE  The entire article should relate to the headline and the picture provided  Do not go off topic  The last sentence should relate back to the first sentence

SUCCESS CRITERIA 4 RELATE THE ARTICLE TO HEADLINE AND PICTURE First Sentence: On Tuesday, March 30 th, a snowstorm hit the southern coast of Ontario, shutting down many of the companies. Last Sentences: “I guess this is a wake-up call that we need to always be prepared for snow”, he said. After all Canadian weather has always had a remarkable history.

SUCCESS CRITERIA 5 INCLUDE SUFFICIENT DETAIL  Make up the small details that help fill in the story  For each of the 5W’s, think of supporting details that will provide a better picture

SUCCESS CRITERIA 5 INCLUDE SUFFICIENT DETAIL  The details should be specific and relevant  Make up numbers  Five people were delayed three hours.  Use specific locations and names  The accident was at the corner of Gore and Bovaird.  Mahad had a lot of difficulty walking through snow that was piled four feet high.

SUCCESS CRITERIA 5 INCLUDE ENOUGH DETAIL Such as:  The storm that started from Vancouver travelled at 24 km/hr and reached Brampton closing down many regions, especially the Peel region.  The storm caused many cars to get stuck in the road for as much as 2 hours.  The storm closed down schools, banks and even universities.  The depth of 170cm of snow is the most shocking snow disaster we have ever had since  Due to this disaster many plans, meetings and lessons were delayed.  One student, Rishi, slipped into a 50cm wide hole and broke her leg.

SUCCESS CRITERIA 6 USE AT LEAST 5-6 PARAGRAPHS  The first paragraph (also known as the lead) is short – no more than 40 words and answers the WHO, WHAT, WHERE and WHEN questions  Make sure to indent each paragraph  Each paragraph should have a separate idea  A quote can be its own paragraph  Paragraphs take up space to help you fill the page

NOW – YOU BE THE JUDGE First, read through the OSSLT Scoring Criteria  The criteria is vague so make sure your news report has enough detail to get you to the top  A passing mark is only a 50 or a 60! Then… Read the five sample of News Reports.  Check off the success criteria that you find  After, rank the News Report as a 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 based on the OSSLT scoring criteria

RANK GIVEN BY THE OSSLT See if you are right!  Sample A – Rank: 60  Sample B – Rank: 30  Sample C – Rank: 10  Sample D – Rank: 40  Sample E – Rank: 20