Sixth graders publish 'The Cardinal Times'

Mrs. Brooke Page’s sixth grade WIN class at Carrington Elementary School (CES) added publishing to their list of accomplishments recently. This group of students published a newspaper called “The Cardinal Times.”

The students interviewed sources, wrote articles, took photos and even did the artwork for a cartoon (which is published on page 4). Each student wrote at least one article, and each also completed work with a partner. Printed copies of the paper were distributed throughout the elementary school.

This is the second year that sixth graders at CES have published a newspaper. Mrs. Page said that one of her former co-teachers, Mrs. Conni Allmaras, came up with the idea last year. This is the first time, however, that it has been shared with the Independent. Superintendent Janelle Helm brought the publication to the Independent’s attention almost as soon as it reached her desk.

Mrs. Page invited me to her classroom on Wednesday, Nov. 17. I received a copy of the newspaper and spent 30 minutes with the students to talk more about newspaper publishing as a career.

The students each received a printed copy of the Nov. 14 edition of the “Foster County Independent,” and they asked several questions about what publishing a weekly newspaper was like. Students learned about writing balanced news stories, facts vs. opinions and ways the newspaper staff get their information. They also learned what “off the record” means when interviewing a source.

Evan Johnson said his favorite part about the project was interviewing people and writing the articles, so he was offered the opportunity to write for the Independent.

Nicholas Pierson and Howard Simonson collaborated on the cartoon, utilizing their illustration talents. Working together to compile the cartoon was their favorite part of the newspaper project, they said.

Newspaper publishers have relied on cartoon illustrators to help make complex issues and personalities more accessible to the general public for more than 150 years. In the U.S, the first comic with a regular cast of characters, “The Little Bears” created by Jimmy Swinnerton, appeared in 1892 in the San Francisco Examiner. It was printed in color and appeared alongside the weather forecast. Nick and Howie’s cartoon carries on that tradition, and hopefully they will continue to share their talents with Independent readers in the future.

All the students were encouraged to submit photos and information to the Independent, to keep readers abreast of what’s happening at CES.

Page said her favorite part about the project was seeing how excited the students were. “With this group of students, you give them an activity and they run with it,” she added. “I just gave them guidelines and they came up with all of the extras, e.g. crossword, interviews, pictures, comics. It was fun to see them take their own interests and incorporate it into their work.”

At its core, the newspaper project provides enrichment for students towards two curriculum standards related to writing.

The class plans to publish “The Cardinal Times’’ at the end of each quarter. Two articles printed in the first quarter edition that cover topics not previously published in the Independent have been reprinted below. Watch the Independent in January, March and May for more excerpts from each quarterly newspaper.