Write For Your Reader
Turning your information in to a story is challenging and fun.
Being a kid reporter is sometimes challenging, but that’s just part of the fun. The difficult part is making a story interesting, factual, AND clear. The trick is to pay attention to details.
One of the most important stories I covered was when Vice President Joe Biden came to the Little Haiti community in Florida after that country’s major earthquake in January. A lot of different people spoke at the event. I got to interview some of them, but not the Vice President.
Not everything that was going on at the event was 100 percent clear to me at first. I had some trouble putting the things I had learned into words kids would understand. I wasn’t sure how to make the story interesting to kids.
What I did was put all my information together—a transcript of Vice President Biden’s speech, the quotes I got from my interviews, the facts I had about the event. Once I had the who, what, where, when, and why, I felt like I could write my story.
I had to do some research to get some of the details that made my story clear and interesting. For example, why was this event in Miami so important? I found out it is because South Florida is home to the largest Haitian-American population in the U.S. I added that to my story.
I also used lots of quotes. I let the people at the event tell the story. They had just the right words to express the feeling that was in the room that day—words of hope, grief, and relief that the U.S. was doing all it could to help the victims of the quake.
I had a similar experience when covering Media Day at this year's Super Bowl. I wrote that piece in first person to help my readers feel they they were experiencing it with me.
It helps to always think about the audience you are writing for when you work on a story. One of my school teachers a few years back advised me to write for my reader. That helps keep you focused and on point.
Keep that in mind when you are putting together your entry to be a Scholastic Kid Reporter. The editors want to see clear, concise writing examples with lots of details. Find out exactly how to apply by clicking here! Then get to work. Deadline is October 12!
PHOTO: Kid Reporter Kiera Fobb speaks with Junior Seau, former NFL player, at the Super Bowl media day in Febuary 2010. (Photo Courtesy Kiera Fobb)
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