Writing the News: Journalism Workshops
Student Journalism Intensive
"Writing the News" is an introduction to journalism. In this multi-session intensive, students have fun while learning the difference between hard and soft news, practicing interview techniques, and using the inverted pyramid to organize their own "human interest" articles.
Journalism Workshops for the Classroom
Classes fifth grade and up can do a one-time workshop on a specific area of journalism: hard vs. soft news, interview skills, note taking for journalism, news-style, inverted pyramid, writing the lead, and feature writing.
Teacher Training
Is your school thinking about starting up a student-run newspaper? We will review classroom lessons, as well as the nuts and bolts of teaching layout design, working with student editors, setting up an issue timeline, and other key topics for making your publication a success.
Laura Shovan advised the award winning student newspaper The Highland Fling as a teacher at Northern Highlands High School in Allendale, N.J. She also advised the school’s award-winning literary magazine, Loch & Quay. For three years, Laura taught journalism to middle schoolers as part of the Summer GT Institutes for Talent Development, a program for gifted students in Howard County, Maryland. She is a regular contributor to the Baltimore Sun and Baltimore’s Child magazine.
As a certified English teacher and freelance journalist, Laura will customize workshops to fit your curriculum and grade level. Laura is also available for author appearances and career days at schools, libraries and community groups. Students are always given resources toward publishing their original articles.
In Maryland, Laura charges a per session fee of $75. If you schedule a workshop through a granting organization like the Maryland State Arts Council, that fee may be lower. Grants are available through the Howard County Arts Council and the Anne Arundel County Arts Council.
Each workshop session is 45 minutes to one hour. Travel fees and expenses are additional. Outside Maryland, please contact Laura to make individual arrangements. For distances more than a two-hour drive, train or airfare and hotel accommodations may be requested.
To inquire about Laura's availability please e-mail laura@laurashovan.com.