These days, it seems anyone with a smartphone can be a journalist! It's true for your middle school students, as well. Whether they are already interested in journalism, or they are brand new to the subject, they will be quick to recognize the importance of the media in their young lives. Learning more about journalism in middle school can help improve their media literacy, and it gives them a chance to express themselves to the world around them.
Here are our top twenty journalism activities to help your middle schoolers thrive in a media-driven world.
1. Current Events Scavenger Hunt
With this fun activity, middle school students look for different news stories and news articles that fit certain descriptions. Their goal is to teach students about journalism while also exposing them to many different types of publishing methods and stories throughout today's news media.
Learn more: Teachers Pay Teachers
2. Intro to Teaching Journalism
This video is a great introduction for teachers and student journalists who are new to the game. It goes over some of the most important points related to journalism, and it introduces different keys to writing an excellent journalism curriculum.
Learn more: Migratory Birds
3. News Presenter Role Play
Pretending to be a newscaster is one of the best ways to introduce the roles and importance of different features of broadcast news. It also explores the different personalities that we see in news coverage, and how the human element impacts the overall quality of journalism.
Learn more: Twinkl
4. What is Community Journalism?
This video is a great introduction to community journalism. It highlights the concepts and vocabulary that are connected to journalism, and it looks at different ways that middle school students are already journalists in their own way. It's a great first step towards more formal journalism training.
Learn more: Asociatia Go Free
5. Benefits of Studying Journalism in Middle School
You can assign this article as a way of exploring the benefits of journalism classes with your students. It touches on way more than just the writing and academic components of journalism: it also explores the social and psychological benefits of getting involved in journalism courses from a young age.
Learn more: Washington Journalism Education Association
6. Listicles and Psychology
This video explores an emerging trend in today's feature stories: the listicle. It is a great way for journalism students to look at the changing ways that media impacts our psychology, and how layout, formatting, and organization play a huge role in the effectiveness of journalism.
Learn more: TED-Ed
7. The Importance of Community Journalism
This TED Talk highlights all of the benefits of community and citizen journalism. It's a great way to inspire kids to make the most of their experiences and to share what they see, hear, and feel with the world. It also touches on the importance of journalism moving into the future.
Learn more: TEDx Talks
8. Basics of News Gathering
This video introduces the most basic and straightforward methods of gathering information to report on. It's all about finding the facts to make a compelling and informative news article. The video is level appropriate for middle school students, too!
Learn more: NBCU Academy
9. Journalism Lesson Plans Database
This website hosts over 200 weeks' worth of journalism lesson plans. It covers the technical skills, organizational skills, and oral communication skills that students need to thrive in journalism. It also helps to inspire students with many timeless feature ideas sprinkled throughout each unit.
Learn more: JEA Curriculum Initiative
10. Analyzing News Trends Worksheet
If you want students to read the news more carefully, this worksheet can be a great help to you. It encourages students to look at stories from print or television news and analyze the message of these stories. Of course, in journalism, there's always more than what meets the eye!
Learn more: Worksheet Place
11. Journalism Lesson Plans, Unit by Unit
This introduction to journalism bundle includes lots of high-quality lesson plans from the PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs. These lesson plans offer insights into how journalism impacts daily life, and how stories about school life can inspire change in the wider society as well.
Learn more: Student Reporting Labs
12. Misleading Graphs and Journalism Ethics
For an eye-opening look at how graphics can impact the veracity of journalism, take a look at this video. It shows how charts and graphs can play a huge role in the message of a piece. It also teaches students how to make ethical and appropriate graphs that will help them convey truthful and clear information.
Learn more: TED-Ed
13. Podcast Journalism in the Classroom
This is a great resource for teachers who want to incorporate real-life podcast examples into their journalism curriculum. It touches on the best tips and tricks for making podcasts relevant to young learners, and how to highlight the main ideas and messages in news and journalism podcasts.
Learn more: Erintegration
14. Introduction to Journalism
This is a pre-made journalism lesson, all ready to go! You can show the video directly to your middle school students, or you can use the video as an inspiration for your own lectures and lesson plans. Either way, it's a great resource for vocabulary and fundamental concepts.
Learn more: TV47 Kenya
15. Comparing News Stories Worksheet
This worksheet helps students identify and talk about the different ways that people can explain the same event. It encourages kids to look at the nuance and underlying tone of two different descriptions of the same event or policy. Then, students will compare and contrast these two news stories.
Learn more: Worksheet Place
16. Tips and Tricks for Teaching Journalism
This is an excellent resource for teachers who find themselves teaching journalism to middle school students. Whether you're the sponsor of the school newspaper or just doing a journalism unit in the language arts or social studies class, these tips and tricks will make all the difference!
Learn more: Secondary English Coffee Shop
17. First Five Steps for a School Newspaper Sponsor
This article lays out the first five things that you should do if you should find yourself leading a school newspaper. It also gives great tips and tricks for how establishing sustainable systems and practices so that students can learn and grow.
Learn more: Healthy Teaching Life
18. Conduct a News Interview Worksheet
This worksheet is a great form for students who are new to conducting news interviews. It includes all of the major questions and details that students should be looking out for, and it is a great reminder even for experienced interview givers.
Learn more: Worksheet Place
19. News Determinants in Language Arts Class
This is a language arts and journalism lesson plan that looks at the different determinants -- or aspects, elements -- of news reporting. It helps students learn the differences between news stories and other forms of writing or reporting. It's also a great segue into specific reading tasks for standardized testing.
Learn more: The Daring English Teacher
20. Journalism Crossword Puzzle Worksheet
This is a fun crossword puzzle that features the important and fundamental vocab words associated with middle school journalism. It's a great way to catch kids' attention at the beginning of a lesson, or it can be a nice way to end the first unit as a review activity. Either way, the words featured here are must-knows!
Learn more: Worksheet Place
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