Opinion Story #2 Brainstorm. Assigned 10/31, due 10/31 - Minor (In-class only, any absences will be excused from this assignment, but must still write an opinion story #2)

Brainstorm

Our next writing assignments will be for the opinions section of the newspaper.

Because of our renewed effort to publish your work on thedispatchonline.net I want you to pick your topics for this assignment. But there are some guidelines we have to follow.

First, you cannot pick something that we just aren't going to convince someone to believe in. For example, the death penalty - people are either for it or against it....pretty much across the board. Other examples include abortion, immigration, drug use, etc. Now there are certain parts of some of those examples that might work. 

Second, we need to LOCALIZE every opinion piece. That means we need to make sure every story idea is of interest to Bowie students, explains the subject in a way they will understand, and that we try to relate it to something local or near us. Be very specific and pick a topic that is local or can have a local slant or angle to the writing.

That is how you pick a story that is localized, impactful, and has two sides to it.

In my newspaper class, I often have my students answer some questions to help them create ideas. I will give them a document like you have in front of you that you got when you walked in the door called "Everyone's a writer - Part 2 of a continuing series" - Take 15 minutes to fill this document out. Make sure to put your name on the top because I will be collecting these after the brainstorm is over.

Now, just like last class, please use the information you created above, combined with what you did last class to come up with THREE new story ideas. On the back of your paper please give me a story idea and make sure to write at least a sentence to help me understand what you want from this story. Hopefully what you wrote above, will help you. My hope is to have these ready by the end of the period so you can sign up for one of these ideas. Some of you may have had some ideas from the last time you looked at the Dispatch - you can use those, but you need to make sure you write a little bit about those just like any other new ones you have thought of (write a sentence or two explaining your idea)

You may not use the following ideas:

1. School closures and consolidation

2. Cell Phone Policy

3. Advisory FIT

4. AC

5. Electronic Hall Passes

6. Safe space or see something, say something

7. Construction

8. AI use

When you are finished with this task, you have the rest of the period to write your Opinion Story #1, make sure your Google Doc is shared properly (so anyone with the LINK CAN EDIT), and make sure it is linked on your Google Site on a new subpage called Opinion Story #1.

Opinion Story #1. Assigned 10/30, due 10/31 at the end of the period - MAJOR

 OPINION STORY #1

Today, you will have the rest of the period to write your first opinion piece. We will keep moving next class, but you might have a little time to finish this up on Friday. You will complete a brainstorm activity on Friday that will help all of us have a great set of options for the second opinion story.

For this one, I am going to give you 8 choices. You must choose one to write about today. That means that I will get multiple stories about the same subject. That is okay. I want this first one to be as easy as possible. Your second opinion story will be unique and no one else will be writing about the same topic. If I like your first opinion story, I may ask you if you would like to publish it online. I will not do this for everyone. Your second opinion story WILL BE PUBLISHED ONLINE.

Make a new Google Doc and title it: Your name and the story title. Once you finish the story, please make sure to create a new subpage on your Google Site called Opinion Story #1, and make it a clickable link there. Make sure to SHARE the document so ANYONE WITH THE LINK can EDIT.

Trigger warning:

Some of these topics might be difficult for you to think about because some of them might trigger specific concerns you have had in your life. These are the types of topics we discuss and sometimes write about in the newspaper program. If you find one of these to be that way for you, please skip it and read the next one. I know it isn't easy to talk about some of these topics, but they are ones that impact high school students in general, and some specifically here at Bowie.

Here are the 8 topics you can choose from:

1. AISD has made a proposal that will eventually lead to the closure of a number of schools (mostly elementary and middle schools) and redrawing boundaries which will change where lots of kids go to school. The reason for these changes are multiple, but the biggest two relate to budget concerns and a potential Texas Education Agency take-over because of so-called "failing schools." Take a stance that this is the right decision by AISD, and that any way to avoid a TEA take-over and clawing back money for the district are crucial to the long-term success of the district. OR, take a stance that closing neighborhood schools is always bad and that parents and their students should be heard by the district the most. 

 

2. Bowie has a new cell phone policy, that was mandated by the state legislator, that phones should be "powered off and stored out of sight" during the school day from the first bell to the last. Some districts across the state have gotten creative and students are allowed to use phones during passing times and at lunch because that isn't "teaching hours" while others are doing something similar to AISD. Some schools are even making students put their phone into things like Yondr bags. You can take multiple stances here as well: either the phone policy is good and students are learning to make it through a 90 minute class without them and learning is improving OR that the policy could be be better (make sure to offer suggestions how it could be better, OR that the policy is terrible and should be reversed (by the legislature, remember it was them that passed this law).

 

3. This year on Monday's during the normal FIT time all students are now expected to go to their "advisory FIT" where they are grouped by grade and alpha with a specific teacher. In this FIT sessions students are being asked to participate in Character Strong lessons geared for each grade level. In addition, the school is using that time for grade checks, and a chance to sit with your Advisory FIT teacher to get support with other classes. What do you think about Advisory FIT? Write an opinion piece that gives your stance on this new FIT plan and how this program is working or not working for you.

 

4. The AC. Oh the AC. Here at Bowie it seems to be a constant battle with making sure classrooms are conditioned properly, whether that is AC or heat, but mostly AC. Write an opinion piece explaining how the AC, or lack of it, impacts your learning.

 

5. Another new initiative this year at Bowie is the electronic hall passes. Using the Enriching Students platform, students now request a pass electronically and have to wait for a teacher to approve the pass. There are limits on how many students are in the hallways at any given time by area. Sometimes students a put into a queue and have to wait for it to be cleared to be able to go to the bathroom. Explain in an opinion piece what you think about this new policy and how it has impacted your learning. Do you feel more comfortable using the new system, or would you prefer just getting some sort of pass? Explain how some teachers are using the system in your class. Has it been easy or hard to be able to use the restroom. Do you think there has been any impact on the cleanliness, or lack of it, with this new system?

 

6. AISD has ramped up a program that has been in place for some time called "see something, say something." The newest piece is a new digital reporting system called "Safe Space" where students can report bullying, harassment, racism, someone threatening to hurt themselves, to report drugs, weapons, or anything else that might impact students safety and to be able to do it anonymously. Write an opinion piece about this topic. There are many options on how you might handle this story, but make sure to focus on how this new program might impact you or your friends. Make sure to talk about" see something, say something" as well.

 

7. Construction, it's been a part of the Bowie world for multiple years. From the parking garage to the new athletic building and now the track, on campus football field and even the new work being done on Slaughter Lane. Write a story about how construction has impacted you. Do you sit in a class where there is someone working near the windows that distracts you? Do you hear the beep, beep, beep of work trucks while taking a test? Make sure you take a stance on construction, meaning should it happen during the school year, or even the school day, etc?

 

8. AI is a bigger and bigger issue in schools. Take a stance on the use of AI in the classroom. This could be how teachers use it, how students use it, or even how it is regulated in college. Make sure you do good research on this topic. Is the energy expended by people using AI good for the environment or not, or should we care? How does AI impact you?

OPINION STORY FORMAT

1. Start with a good introduction that gives us, in very short fashion, the basics about your topic. Make sure you state your DIRECT opinion on the topic you have chosen. You must take a STANCE on this story. For example if your topic is masks, you can argue that masks should be outlawed, you could argue that masks should be required, you could argue that masks should be worn in some circumstances and not in others. But you must take a side, one way or the other.

2. Write in 1st person if you want. This means you can use the word "I" if you want.

3. There are no quotes needed, BUT you will need facts to base your opinion on. You WILL need to do a little research about any of these topics so you have good facts - try google as a good starting place. Wikipedia is also a good place to get information, but make sure you verify the facts you find there, sometimes they are not very accurate.

4. State your opinion early and support it fully.

5. Address the other side, this means you need to directly say what the other side might feel about your opinion. Not only do you need to acknowledge their side, you need to refute their opinion, that means you need to prove them wrong somehow.

6. Come up with some solutions to your problem and try to convince the other side that your ideas might work.

7. To close, you can restate your stance.

So pick your topic, do some research about your topic on google (make sure its facts!! Google and certainly Wikipedia are not always factual!!)

And start writing!!! Don't worry, you can't be wrong, this is your opinion. Know your subject, take a side and stick with it (don't be wishy-washy!!) and go for it.

This piece will need to be about 400 words (350-500) and should be about 12-15 paragraphs long. Pace yourself and make sure you have most of this story done today. Many of you will finish it. Next class I will outline in more detail the format for your second opinion story, but what you have above, works for now. Do the best you can. The best of these will be published on the https://thedispatchonline.net.

CE#2.1 and Opinion Writing Preview. Assigned 10/28. due 10/30 - CE and Minor

On your Google Site, please make a new subpage and title it: Current Events Quiz #2.1. Answer the question below on that page. You are welcome to make multiple text boxes if that is easier, or if you want to work on just one text box, that is great. Whatever is best for you. Please be aware that if you copy and past the questions to your Google Site, it can create some formatting problems. I DO NOT NEED you to include the questions - just the answers.

Here is today's!!

1.  Hurricane Melissa is currently smashing into Jamaica. How many years have the Jamaican government been keeping track of the strength of hurricane's, according to the article?

https://apnews.com/article/hurricane-melissa-jamaica-landfall-cuba-bahamas-8f71433722c9963554421d9258cd4d6b

2. How many days did TxDOT give the city of Austin, under direct orders from Governor Greg Abbott, to remove crosswalks and murals that are deemed inappropriate, according to the article?

https://www.kut.org/transportation/2025-10-28/austin-tx-rainbow-crosswalks-paint-art-txdot-greg-abbott

3. According to the article, how many Oscars nominations did the 2024 film version of Wicked receive?

https://variety.com/2025/film/awards/wicked-for-good-first-reactions-ariana-grande-cynthia-erivo-1236562502/

4. How many people were arrested last week in an FBI raid that resulted in the arrest of prominent NBA coaches and players like Chauncey Billups and Damon Jones?

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/46732224/billups-jones-rozier-nba-gambling-scandal-mafia-ties-history

5. What is the effect where the Earth receives energy from the sun and reflects part of it back into space called?

https://gizmodo.com/the-odd-symmetry-between-earths-northern-and-southern-hemispheres-is-breaking-down-2000677592

Long Response:

Please read the following story and respond to the questions below. Please answer the question fully and always try to answer WHY. This section is the subjective section and I will penalize you if you write one word or short phrases for answers with an open-ended question. 

REMINDER - A single sentence isn't enough. I expect you to expand upon your writing. If you think you have written enough, you haven't, write more. Be sure to answer WHY you think something.

Please read the following article about Grokipedia:

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/oct/28/elon-musk-grokipedia

A. Summarize the short story in a few sentences

B. Why do you think Elon Musk has launched this Wikipedia rival?

C. Do you think AI can be manipulated from the inside?

D. Would you trust something to give you information that was created by AI?

E. Give me at least one reason that you can think of to use this new resources?

NOW WORK ON THIS ASSIGNMENT:

Opinion Writing Preview

To get started today, we need to explore a little bit about what an opinion story should look like.

Check out this site: https://makemynewspaper.com/how-to-write-an-opinion-piece-for-a-school-newspaper/

As you read through the site AND watch the videos, please answer the following questions on your Google Site on a new subpage called Opinion Writing Preview:

1. What is the difference between an editorial and a column?

2. List the four types of editorials.

3. What are the five things you will need to do to make sure you write a persuasive and entertaining piece?

4. On your Google Site, please give me a list of five things that you think would be great topics for an opinion piece. Think about what goes on around you each day, something you read in the news or on your social media that you think would engage students. Is there something that has made you upset or angry that you think should be written about? Remember as you come up with these ideas, there should be something that needs to be solved, a dilemma that should be addressed, or something that you think needs to be changed. I will compile these so you have options on your second Opinion piece you will write next week. That story will be published on the thedispatchonline.net.

Then go to this website:

http://www.schoolnewspapersonline.com/clients/client-list/high-schools/

Find the Texas High School section.

Click on any school in Texas (EXCEPT BOWIE) and find their opinion/commentary section.

Pick one opinion story that interests you, read it.

Answer the following in a new blog post titled SNO Online Papers:

For each story answer the following questions:

1. Who wrote the story?

2. What is their story about?

3. What is their direct opinion about that topic? Please quote it directly from the story or do a really good job of paraphrasing.

4. Did they address what the other side might think about their topic?

5. Were they wishy-washy with their opinion? Did they backtrack, or did they say one thing and then somewhere else say something that was almost the opposite? 

6. Did they support their opinion with facts?

7. Are there any quotes in the story?

8. What point of view did they write in (1st, 2nd or 3rd)?

Do this for THREE Texas online newspapers

Ethics in the Media. Assigned 10/23, due 10/28 at the end of the period - MAJOR

Ethics in the Media

The Nationals Scholastic Press Association has developed a code of ethics for scholastic journalism students.

Before we dive into their code, its important to understand what the word "Ethics" means and how it applies to your writing.

The working definition of the word is as follows:

ETHICS = moral principles that govern a person's or group's behavior.

But that definition has a couple of more words that could be difficult to get as well, and to be honest, ethics is a pretty big concept that is hard to define.

MORALS = a person's standards of behavior or beliefs concerning what is and is not acceptable for them to do.

When we add the word Morals to our understanding, Ethics starts to become a little easier to comprehend.

PRINCIPLES = a rule or belief governing one's personal behavior.

And now that we add the word Principles into the equation, we should have a good idea of what Ethics means.

In simple terms - ETHICS is a persons beliefs about what is acceptable for them to do regarding their personal behavior. It is what drives them to make the decisions about how the behave and act.

How does this apply to journalism?

It is crucial that journalists hold themselves to the HIGHEST level of ethical decision making. So much so that it might even be higher than they would act in the real world or in their personal lives.

Here are the criteria that NSPA has set down:

Seven Key Ethics Points

1. Be Responsible
2. Be Fair
3. Be Honest
4. Be Accurate
5. Be Independent
6. Minimize Harm
7. Be Accountable

You can read more about them here:

http://studentpress.org/nspa/the-wheel-model-code-of-ethics/

Here are some common ethical problems student journalists face:

1. Conflict of interest: Examples include interviewing friends; only interviewing one grade or those with a specific point of view; covering clubs and teams that you are a member of, "getting even" with those who might have wronged you; doing anything that might compromise objectivity in the reporting of the truth.
2. Plagiarism: Claiming others' work as one's own, essentially stealing from them. Students must credit other people's materials and ideas, including those published in newspapers, magazines and books. This includes "borrowing" or downloading visuals from the Internet to use without permission with stories.
3. Anonymous/unnamed sources: Although reporters sometimes use anonymous sources, most news organizations have strict guidelines about when to use them. A reporter has to determine the information's value and whether is it possible to get it any other way. The reporter and editor also have to determine whether it is wise to protect the source from harm from being an identified source. A comment about the cafeteria's food should not be permitted to remain anonymous, for example. But a revelation about suffering childhood sexual abuse may be.
4. Offending or distasteful content: Although it's sometimes impossible to publish a story without offending or displeasing someone, journalists must strive to keep the communications open and accessible to a wide range of views without stooping to gratuitous offense. While some use of "dirty" language might be necessary, journalists have to decide if there is another way to present the information or if the presentation will be so offensive it will preclude readers from getting the information. There is almost always a higher road to take.
5. Invasion of privacy: While this is often a legal issue, it is also an ethical one. Reporters and editors must consider the consequences of publishing the outstanding news value photo or naming someone in an article.
6. Bias: Human beings cannot be purely objective. The mere selection of one story over another raises the issue of value judgments. Those who create content must attempt to be as fair, impartial and transparent to the public as is possible. Every issue has more than one side, and all sides should be represented as much as possible.
7. Commitment to accuracy: Little undermines integrity and credibility of news reports more than carelessness, errors or, in rare circumstances, deceit or not being transparent about how/why a story was done. Holding back a story until it is ready is better than publishing inaccurate information. The rush to be first - whether digital, online or in print - is no justification for not checking and double-checking data, information and sources.

Now let's look at some examples.

Directions: 

1. Pick 3 of the 19 Case Studies presented in the link below.
2. Read the prompt, decide if you want to read more.
3. Read the question presented.
4. Click to the link and read the story.
5. On your blog summarize the situation. Remember to stick with the facts in this portion, explain the situation as objectively as possible. This should be done in 3-5 sentences.
6. Then tell me your opinion, is it ethically acceptable to do what was presented or not (this is the question that is asked, the clickable link). Make sure to tell me WHY. WHY is such an important thing to specify so do your best.

Here is the link:

http://www.spj.org/ethicscasestudies.asp

If you are stuck picking your three, here are a couple that I recommend (But pick the ones you are interested in please):

Aargh! Pirates! (and the Press)
A Suspect "Confession"
The Media's Foul Ball
Offensive Images

You have TWO classes to complete this assignment and to keep working on your Club Story. 

Here are the deadlines for your Club Story:

Tuesday, October 28 - Planning document prepared with a correct clickable link, shared properly, with sources, questions and an outline - Minor Grade (Club Story Planning Document)

Thursday, November 6 - At least two interviews have been completed and you have some writing done - Minor Grade (Club story check point)

Tuesday, November 11 - The story is complete and ready for edits (Club Story)

Thursday, November 13 - Reflection is due (Club Story Reflection)

News Story Planning and Work Day. Assigned 10/21, due 10/23 - Minor

Hello everyone!

Today is a work day. I would like you to focus your time on your News Story about the club or organization that you were assigned. 

I expect that each of you will have something started on these stories TODAY. What does that mean? Well, here is a list of things that should be on your Google Doc by the end of the period:

a. Sourcing ideas (who will you talk to?)

b. Questions (what will you ask them?)

c. Research (what have you found out about that club, group, or organization?)

d. An outline (The basic structure - LTQT, you can at least lay the ground work for what you will eventually put in here

The next step will be to set up some interviews. I am going to talk about this in class and go over the best ways to get these done. There will be SOME class time available in the coming few weeks to do these interviews. We are going to work on Opinion Writing, but while we are doing those, you will have time to go out and interview. 

This is when the class can feel a little chaotic, but I hope that you can manage. This is also a good way for me to see how well you handle deadlines and juggling multiple things at the same time. This is exactly what happens in the newspaper program and I hope a bunch of you are going to join us next year.

I will set a firm deadline and give you checkpoints to help you out. That will be posted next class with the new assignment.

Here is the assignment itself:

These stories will cover a club or organization on campus. You will do all of the same things you did for the fake "student of the month" story. ONLY this time it is real. You will need to write:

• 375-500 words

• Minimum 3 sources - one sponsor and 2 students involved

• Make sure your DIRECT QUOTES are in the proper style and format. Please look at the following for the correct use of punctuation, style and structure. Here are two more examples:

Single sentence quote:

“I would prefer digital because bubbling in the answer was annoying and just putting in the answers online would be more efficient,” junior Abby Oden said. 

Two (or three) sentence quote:

“I’ve done proctoring for online testing before and one of the biggest things that are important is to get some familiarity with the testing platform,” English teacher Whitney Shumate said. “There is a different learning curve with online tests like students with accommodations should have some familiarity with the test since it’s a new thing.”

• LTQT style - with your attributions done correctly!!

• NO EDITORIALIZING

• You will be required to share your entire process including interview question writing, sourcing, interviews, rough draft and final draft. ALL ON THE SAME GOOGLE DOC.

Here is the link to the Google Sheet where the assignments live. Make sure you use the correct Google Doc. Make sure it is shared CORRECTLY, which means ANYONE with the LINK can EDIT.

24-25 Journalism 1 News/Club Stories

News Story Selections and work day. Assigned 10/14, due 10/16 - Minor

Today you will volunteer for your first News Story to appear in the Dispatch online. You will submit your top-5 choices today during class and I will assign them as you continue to work on the Huntington and Earthquake or Dispatch Issue #1, or anything else you are missing.

These stories will cover a club or organization on campus. I have narrowed down your options to around 30, but the good news is that each of these clubs has either asked for us to cover them, or have been responsive in the past. I hope that each of you gets one of your top-5 picks. For this assignment you could focus on what the club is and what happens when that club meets, you could write a story about a specific member of the club (most likely one of the student leaders) and focus on why the club is so important to them, or you could come up with a different angle. I will let you decide. 

You will ABSOLUTELY need to go to a club meeting. You cannot do this without going to a meeting. Your first effort might be to contact the sponsor, but some sponsors are better than others about answering student reporter questions. You HAVE to go during the club meeting to get this story done. PERIOD.

You will do all of the same things you did for the fake "student of the month" story. ONLY this time it is real. You will need to write:

400-550 words

Minimum 3 sources - one sponsor and 2 students involved

LTQT style - with your attributions done correctly!!

NO EDITORIALIZING

You will be required to share your entire process including interview question writing, sourcing, interviews, rough draft and final draft. ALL ON THE SAME GOOGLE DOC.

First, go check out your options (If you are in a club not listed and you want to write about that club, please let me know):

Bowie Clubs for 2025-26

Then go here to put in your top-5 choices:

Top-5 choices

This shared link is editable by ALL OF YOU, so please take your time and only type in the row next to your name. Give me the Club or Organization you would like to write a story about. BE CAREFUL!!

When I assign the story, I will let you know on this link:

News/Club stories assigned

Once you know what your story is, you will go into the Google Sheet above and do the following things:

1. Make a Google Doc, share it so that anyone with the link can EDIT. Copy the link and put it in the appropriate spot on the same line as your name. It should be CLICKABLE.

2. Figure out the Club Sponsors name and type it in the appropriate spot on the same line as your name.

3. Develop a question that you think should guide your writing for this story? This could be informing people about the club, it could be something you learn when you interview the club sponsor, or perhaps it could be about what the club is and what they do in the club. You need to determine this question. You will need to type it in the appropriate spot on the same line as your name.

4. Then you will need to find at least two students to interview. I expect you to type their names in the appropriate spot on the same line as your name.

5. Then it is up to you to get started. You will have one IN-CLASS work day on Oct. 26th to write, conduct interviews, etc. in class, it will be due on Nov. 14th and you will have that day to write as well. But you CANNOT do this in class alone. You will have to do some things outside of class. I will be able to help you along the way. You will have things to turn in on the two in-class workdays and I will make sure you have them in advance. Those will be part of the grade for this assignment.

Once you have made your 5 choices, please work on anything you are not done with.

Huntington and Earthquake. Assigned 10/9, due 10/ 14 - Minor (last grade of the 9 week cycle)

Huntington and Earthquake

Please make a new Google Site subpage called Huntington & Earthquake stories and complete the following two tasks:

Directions – write a 250-word brief using inverted pyramid and in transition-quote structure. You may use this information and make up anything else you need to complete the story.

Janice Jones is 53 years old and lives in Barstow, California, according to California Highway Patrol press liaison Tammy Rye.

Rye said Jones was eating pork chops in the back of her motor home, which was parked on Beach Boulevard near Highway 1, when her dog knocked her 9 mm handgun off a seat. The weapon discharged when it hit the floor, and the bullet passed through Jones; leg and through the side of the vehicle, according to Rye. “It could have been worse,” Rye said. “The bullet hit two inches from the gas tank.”

Jones was shot in the right leg around 10 p.m. Wednesday, Rye said.

Jones was transported to Huntington Beach Hospital via ambulance and later was transported to Irvine Medical Center, Rye said. Jim Washington, a spokesperson for Huntington Beach Hospital, confirmed Jones was treated at the hospital but gave no additional information.

Jones’ dog, a Pomeranian named Tombo, was placed in the care of the Huntington Beach Animal Control officers.

The dog seemed to be malnourished, according to Janet Ngo, one of the animal control officers, and had fresh cigarette burns on its forehead. “It could have done with a little less abuse and a few more of those pork chops,” Ngo said.

Ngo indicated that her office would explore filing animal abuse charges against Jones.

Rye said officers cited Jones for expired plates and the county’s district attorney’s office was considering whether to charge her in relation to the gun accident. Jones doesn’t have a permit for the gun, Rye said.

#2 on the same Google site subpage

Directions - Write a 350-word, inverted-pyramid story based on the following set of facts. Assume that the story is for Tuesday morning’s paper. You may make up any additional information you need to complete the story.

An earthquake rocked the San Francisco Bay area Monday morning. The quake struck at 8:12 a.m. PDT

A building housing McHenry’s Auto Supply at 2342 Plum St. partially collapsed, killing two people and injuring six others, according to  Jennifer Vu, a public information officer from the Hayward Fire Department. Names of the dead are being withheld pending notifications of families, Vu said.

Hayward resident Mike Beamer, whose apartment is across the street from McHenry’s, said he felt a rolling motion that lasted for about 30 seconds, with a big jolt coming in the middle. “I was eating my breakfast when the room started rolling. I dove under the table just as I heard an explosion outside and a chunk of cement flew through my kitchen window. That’s when the screaming start across the street.”

Hayward firefighters used ropes to stabilize the auto supply shop, conducting a search of the building and capped a gas line after detecting a gas leak at the site.

The epicenter of the earthquake, which had a magnitude of 6.4 on the Richter scale, was under the Hayward Hills, according to Penny Gertz, a scientist from the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park. Gertz called the quake a “strong one” and said it occurred on the Hayward Fault, which runs under the hills.

"Twenty-one fire personnel, 12 police and five American Red Cross workers responded to the building collapse, with some arriving within four minutes of the quake,"Vu said.

Three of the six people injured were hurt seriously enough to require hospitalization and were transported to Hayward General Hospital, according to Vu. She added the no other serious injuries have been reported in Hayward.

"People as far south as Los Angeles and as far north as Redding felt the quake," Gertz said.

Dispatch Issue #1. Assigned 10/7, due 10/9 - Minor

The Dispatch Issue #1

Today we are going to spend the entire period reading the 1st issue of the Dispatch. I will pass out copies of the paper shortly. You will need your own copy. You are welcome to take it home if you would like.

Please read one story from each of the following SIX sections:

1. News or the Politics page

2. Features 

3. Entertainment or Reviews or the Photo Essay (pg 6 or 16)

4. Sports

5. Commentary

6. And you must read either the In-Depth story on page 8-9 (Statehouse to Schoolroom) or 7 (Teen Driving)

As you read the stories I want you to answer the following questions for EACH story on your Google Site on a new subpage called Dispatch Issue #1:

1. Write a two sentence summary of the story.

2. Answer the following questions for each story:

Who was quoted in the story?

What quote was the strongest in your opinion?

Did the lead paragraph make you want to keep reading?

Was the conclusion a quote or a statement?

3. Now make a new text box on the same subpage (Dispatch Issue #1) and answer the following questions:

Which story made you want to learn more about the topic?

Which story was the best written?

Which story had the best quotes (overall)?

Which story was the most boring of the ones you read?

Which one was the hardest to follow (meaning maybe wasn't written as well)?

4. Then I want you to do a couple of things with the photography. In a new text box, answer the following questions:

A. What is your favorite photo in the entire paper?
A1. Why is this your favorite?

B. What is your least favorite photo in the entire paper?
B1. Why is this your least favorite?

C. If you were a photographer on staff, which event/photo assignment would you have liked to do for this issue? You will need to look through the entire paper and see the topics covered and decide which one you think would have been fun.

D. Overall, how would you rate the photography in this issue (1-10 scale, 1 being terrible, 10 being the best set of photos you have ever seen)? What were the strong points and weak points of the images as a whole?

5. LAST TASK - The newspaper staff just completed a brainstorm activity for the second issue of the year which will come out November 5. I consider my Journalism 1 students part of staff, so I want to hear from you. Please list 3 to 5 story ideas you think would be interesting to read about in the school newspaper. Try to think of things that impact students, or has some sort of local connection. If you propose an idea for something broader than that, please give me some sort of story "angle" that could be "localized" to Bowie. Every story in the school newspaper should have some sort of impact on students at the school.

C.E. #1.2 AND Student of the Month Story. Assigned 10/3, due 10/3 - CE and MAJOR

On your Google Site, please make a new subpage and title it: Current Events Quiz #1.2. Answer the question below on that page. You are welcome to make multiple text boxes if that is easier, or if you want to work on just one text box, that is great. Whatever is best for you. Please be aware that if you copy and past the questions to your Google Site, it can create some formatting problems. I DO NOT NEED you to include the questions - just the answers.

Here is today's!!

1.  What is the big issue facing the new Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally, according to the article below?

https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/uk-names-mullally-first-female-archbishop-lead-church-england-2025-10-03/

2. What was Taylor Swift's goal, according to the article, with her latest album release called The Life of a Showgirl?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4wpe5z52qo

3. What was the big controversy surrounding the most recent Ryder Cup played in New York last weekend?

https://www.espn.com/golf/story/_/id/46469747/pga-america-president-apologizes-us-fans-behavior

4. What kind of items did researchers find in giant bird nests that have survived for centuries?

https://phys.org/news/2025-10-bearded-vulture-hoards-cultural-artifacts.html

5. What would colleges receive from the Trump administration if they signed the "Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education," according to the article?

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/usc-told-adopt-trumps-conservative-155336133.html

Long Response:

Please read the following story and respond to the questions below. Please answer the question fully and always try to answer WHY. This section is the subjective section and I will penalize you if you write one word or short phrases for answers with an open-ended question. 

REMINDER - A single sentence isn't enough. I expect you to expand upon your writing. If you think you have written enough, you haven't, write more. Be sure to answer WHY you think something.

Please read the following article about OpenAI Sora 2:

https://www.ign.com/articles/pokmon-dont-sue-me-sora-2-app-opens-floodgates-to-ai-videos-of-pikachu-mario-and-more

A. Briefly, in a sentence or two, explain what the article is about.

B. List at least two companies whose copyrighted products might be used by this new AI product illegally, according to the article?

C. In your opinion, what should the limits on AI be? Is it okay for AI to source copyrighted products and be used to create memes, gifs, etc. using those protected images/creations?

D. Do you think AI could become so powerful that it could endanger humans?

E. What limits should be placed in an academic setting regarding the use of AI in the classroom, in your opinion?

When you are done with your Current Events Quiz #1.2, you need to finish your Student of the month story and get it turned in.

Here is how to turn in your SotM story via Google doc thru your Google Site:

Make sure you wrote your story in your AISD Google Drive.

PLEASE MAKE SURE I CAN EDIT THE DOCUMENT. I need to be able to leave you notes on your story.

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU SHARE IT PROPERLY SO THAT ANYONE WITH THE LINK CAN EDIT. I need to be able to leave notes on your story. DO NOT EMAIL ME THE LINK, instead when you have those done, make sure the link is a CLICKABLE link on your Google Site on a new subpage called: Student of the Month Story.

Here are some things you should check before you share it:

1. Make sure it is around 350 words. You can be a little under or even a little over, but not by much. I will check this.

2. Do you have 10-12 paragraphs (or more)? You should have at least 10 paragraphs.

3. Did you make it easy to see those paragraphs? Go back and put a space between each paragraph. See my sample below.

4. Did you put direct quotes on their own paragraph? You should have. DO NOT EMBED QUOTES, EVER!!

5. Did you think about inverted pyramid? Is the most important stuff (WHY did your friend win student of the month?) at the top? Are there additional things at the end, that might be interesting to know, but aren't crucial to the story?

6. Did you answer the 5 W's and 1 H?

7. Did you look at the multiple examples of how to format the direct quote properly? Each of them should look just like this:

"Start of the quote goes here, usually 1 sentence," title name said. "The second sentence goes here, if you have one."

Look CAREFULLY at the punctuation marks. Yours should look EXACTLY like mine.

8. Do you have 3 sources? You should have at least 1 quote from each source. Ideally you would have 2 students and 1 adult in each story. For this one, you should have your primary source (your friend in class) and 2 other sources you made up.

9. Here are a few things you probably don't know, but if you have time to fix, you should. 

A. Numbers under 10 are spelled out, numbers over 10 are not.

B. Titles are not capitalized unless they are a proper noun. For example English teacher, the English would be capitalized, but government teacher, the government would not.

C. For dates, we never use the letters th, it would just be March 4.

D. Make sure you check proper nouns. Don't use text-speak. You is you, not u. I is I not i. Use proper English spellings and punctuations. This is still an English-type class.

E. If the google doc puts a colored line under anything on your page, it is telling you that there is a problem. Red lines mean spelling, blue lines generally mean you have broken an English rule. Do not turn in anything with any lines underneath them. Fix those.

F. I should only read the first name and title for any source ONE TIME. Once you introduce them, you should use last names ONLY.

G. High school is two words, and if it is used with the school name, it is a proper noun so it should be capitalized like James Bowie High School.

Here is my sample story: Don't plagiarize my writing!!

Word count = 389, 14 paragraph

       Monday morning the Bowie administration named its October student of the month. The winner was Erica Jones and she was chosen because of her high GPA and outstanding efforts outside of the classroom, according to the committee that picked her.

    "I was so excited to win student of the month," Jones said. "It really meant a lot to me to be singled out for this award, I worked very hard last month in my classes and I volunteered 25 hours for the NHS."

    Jones maintains a 4.60 GPA and is a member of a number of extra curricular clubs at the school.

    "We named Erica the student of the month because not only is she a great student, she gives so much to the community," principal Mark Robinson said.

    Jones said that one of her favorite classes is Biotech because she is hoping to go to college at John Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland after graduation.

    “My dream since I entered high school was to be a doctor, but I am a little squeamish of blood,” Jones said. “So, the next best thing is to become a researcher where I can impact what kinds of drugs people take, or maybe help create the next biofuels for human use.”

    At the end of last year Jones was nominated and won a leadership role in the National Honors Society.

    "Erica was heads and shoulders above the rest of the people who were nominated," NHS sponsor and English teacher Samantha Smith said. "Her position this year is president of the club."

    In addition to NHS, Jones is also involved in the Art Club, the Magic the Gathering Club and plays ping pong during lunch with the Ping Pong Club.

    "I love to play Magic. I think the logic and deck building is so much fun," Jones said. "Plus when I need a good workout, I go smash around a ping pong ball."

    In addition to her high grades and club involvement, Jones volunteers at her church.

    "I am a pre-school teacher in bible class," Jones said. "I love to work with the little kids. I want to be a teacher in the future."

    Jones has three younger siblings, including her step-brother Ethan King, who is a freshman at Bowie.

    "I was so proud of her," King said. "She is an inspiration."

Student of the Month writing day. Assigned 10/2, due 10/3 - MAJOR

For the rest of the class you will be working on your Student of the Month story. You will have until Friday to complete this assignment and to write in class. This will be due on Friday, October 3 by the end of class. You will also take a current events quiz that day.

You have interviewed someone in class and you should have your questions and answers already on your Google Doc. You were also already supposed to have your additional two interviews completed, remember we made these up. Those should also be on your Google Doc. A really good way to organize these "different" interviews is to color code them. Here is an example:

SAMPLE STORY DOC

On YOUR same Google Doc, either at the top or the bottom - start writing your story. You could label it with DRAFT, or even just write the words STORY. 

For this first effort, I want you to write a straight news lead, meaning you should try to tell me who, what, where, when and maybe the beginning of why or how in that first paragraph.

This can be really simple, just answer the following questions in the first paragraph:

Who:
What:
Where:
When:
Why:

or
How:

HINT: Make sure you use full names, make sure you do the quotations correctly, make sure you follow the format, and in general each sentence will be its own paragraph.

Here is the formula we will be using to write these "NEWS" stories:

LEAD - 5W's

Direct Quote - which goes with the lede
Statement - factual information about your subject - can be an indirect quote, but should be used sparingly
Direct Quote - which goes with the statement above
Statement - factual information about your subject - can be an indirect quote, but should be used sparingly
Direct Quote - which goes with the statement above
Statement - factual information about your subject - can be an indirect quote, but should be used sparingly
Direct Quote - which goes with the statement above
Etc
Etc

Statements are FACTS. These tell us something new about your subject. You should base these "facts" on a quote you have to go with your story, as they work together. Think about the inverted pyramid. Tell me the most important reasons your person won student of the month first, and slowly add less relevant reasons.

When you do your quote, we also use a very specific style. Please not the construction of that direct quote. Notice the punctuation. The quote structure will be EXACTLY the same every single time. Look at where the quotation marks are. Look at the attribution - it always starts with a title, then a full name and finishes with SAID. Once you introduce someone the first time, you can revert to just using their last name from then on. Finally, if you end up having people with the same last name in your story, I will  go over how to do that next class.

Here is an example of a quote:

"I think Dave was a perfect choice for student of them month," history teacher James Smith said. "He works hard in class and is a leader in JROTC and those really help him be a standout."

Your story needs to be at least 350 words and should be at least 10-12 paragraphs long.

HINT: Simple and concise are the best words to think about when you are writing. Is this simple, like so your little brother who is 12 could read it and understand it. And concise; meaning are the sentences and paragraphs short and to the point. Big words are fine, but use appropriate big words. Let your VERBS shine!!

You will be assigned a club or organization to write about soon, and at that time we will talk a little more about lead writing, specifically we will shift to a "narrative" lead and will add another paragraph between the lead and the first quote. We will cover that later.