The Journalism Club of Good Pine Middle School recently published their first newspaper and the club members have been receiving great reviews from its publication.
The eight-page letter size publication, entitled “The Goodpine Good Times,” was hand delivered to classmates throughout the school prior to the Christmas/New Year’s break in December.
“They were so proud when we finally were able to give everyone a copy,” Club Sponsor Gena Foreman said.
At the first of the school year, students at the school were given various club options to take part in on certain days of the month as part of Superintendent Jon Garrett’s STEM program. One of those options was the Journalism Club which netted around eleven members.
“During our initial meeting, the members brainstormed a good name for the paper and finally settled on “The Goodpine Good Times,” Foreman stated. “They also discussed topics, created writing assignments, researched information and took photos to include with stories.”
The sponsor noted that one of the hard lessons they had to learn was when to scrap ideas and go with something different.
“But they were all quick to help each other when they needed some words, ideas or corrections,” she said.
Just like a traditional newspaper, the sponsor set deadlines for various content, which she said they all met.
“At the beginning of the whole process, the students were really nervous about writing and producing something that the whole school would see,” Foreman said.
“But once it was finished, they were so excited to share their news with the rest of the school.”
All aspects of journalism were covered during the production of the school newspaper, from writing and photography, to content and editorials and even distribution.
“During our last club meeting they all assisted in making copies of the paper for the whole school and many of the members helped deliver them to classrooms on campus,” she continued. “This helped them see the distribution process.”
The two main stories that made the front page of their newspaper highlighted how successful the clubs have been at the school and a feature on the school’s secretary, Becky Bacle.
Inside, there are stories about various events occurring around the campus, two pages of editorials – opinions – sports news, faculty “shout outs!” and the final page is a word search for students to enjoy. All of the content was written and produced by the students of the club.
Each of the school year’s two semesters allows students at the school to choose a club to participate in, giving them the opportunity to change to a different club for the second semester.
“But they all said that journalism was the best club and they were so glad they chose it,” Foreman said. “They also said they wanted to do it again next semester,” Foreman noted.
The Journalism Club has plans to produce one more issue of The Goodpine Good Times, set to hit classrooms in May.
Club members include: Aida Savant, Addy White, Addi Mitchell, Sara Elizabeth Andrews, Audie McClure, Lydia Powell, Glade Rainey, Hayden Pillsbury, Caden Taylor, Abriana Walters and Andrew McKeithen.
