Feature+Articles


 * Kathryn Calmes ** Unfamiliar Genre Wiki Authors

**Background Information**
__Genre:__ Journalism - News Feature Article __ Definition: __ A News Feature article generally lends its attention to problems in society. While writing within this genre, writers must not pick a topic too broad, but rather focus on a story that can be written in 1500 words. Also, the article must focus on facts and not the author’s opinion; rather the news article must show both sides of the story. __ Purpose: __ Feature Articles are also known as “people stories”. The purpose of these articles is to inform, engage, and often entertain the general reading public about a specific topic. __ Audience ** : **__ Individuals reading newspaper articles are generally young adults to adults. Audience members will most likely be citizens who are interested in the happenings in the area. __ Conventions: __ Articles need to begin with a lead statement that will catch the reader’s attention. The article must be written in Standard English. While the vocabulary needs to be mature, the author probably doesn’t want to make the article overly scientific or challenging, or else the general public might not be able to appreciate the article.

**Example Feature Articles - Annotated Bibliography**
Four sample Feature Articles by: Jason Beaubien and Ted Burnham from //NPR//, Benoit Denizet-Lewis and Serge F. Kovaleski from //The New York Times//. **[|Example Feature Articles - Calmes.docx]**

<span style="color: #cb01cb; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">A How-To Book for Feature Articles
<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: left;"> A step-by-step guide for high school students to create their very own Feature Articles suitable for newspapers.
 * <span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Georgia,serif;">[|How-To - Calmes.doc] **

<span style="color: #cb01cb; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">**CCGPS Instructional Activities**
** Activity #1 ** focuses on introductory paragraphs for a variety of different writing genres. Example introductions are from Feature Articles.
 * [|CCGPS Lesson #1 - Calmes.docx] **
 * [|It's Not U, It's Me Article.pdf] **

** Activity #2 ** focuses on paraphrasing techniques, necessary for research.
 * [|CCGPS Lesson #2 - Calmes.docx] **
 * [|War Turning Mexican Kids Into Targets or Killers Article.pdf] **

<span style="color: #cb01cb; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">**Student Assessment**
This assessment is a research paper that requires students to use paraphrasing and writing techniques that were previously taught. Students will choose a historical fiction topic and write as if they were involved in the historical event.

<span style="color: #cb01cb; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;"> Additional Teaching Resources
<span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 110%; text-align: left;">**1. Making the Research Paper Come Alive.** [] This article, from Education World, details how two teachers in Kansas created a research assignment in hopes of sparking an interest in their students. Their goal was to combine the research skills students need to learn with a unit on creative writing. The result is a project that has every 11th grader writing an original piece of historical fiction. <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 110%; text-align: left;">**2. Scaffolding Methods for Research Paper Writing.** [] Although this lesson plan has a targeted grade level of 6th through 8th grade, I believe it is still valuable information for any grade level. Even when a student is taught the research process in 9th grade, by the time he or she is in 11th grade, this knowledge more than likely has been forgotten. The research paper seems to be a complex assignment for traditional students. Lesson plans that break down the process are more helpful for the student and the teacher. [] This 73 page guide is a great starting point for educators teaching the research paper. Personally, I would use the information and make it my own so that it is appropriate for my current students’ abilities. The guide includes tips and information on: plagiarism, annotated bibliographies, citation formats, common mistakes, choosing the appropriate internet sites, works cited page, quotations, etc.
 * 3. Fayette County Schools – Research Paper Survival Guide.**