The Basic Story Outline

The best way to structure a newspaper article is to first write an outline. Review
your research and notes. Then jot down ideas for the following six sections. Remember,
this is just a foundation upon which to build your story.

I. Lead sentence

Grab and hook your reader right away.

II. Introduction

Which facts and figures will ground your story? You have to tell your readers
where and when this story is happening.

III. Opening quotation

What will give the reader a sense of the people involved and what they are
thinking?

IV. Main body

What is at the heart of your story? (You may include some important quotations
to support your story)

V. Closing quotation

Find something that sums the article up in a few words.

VI. Conclusion (optional—the closing quote may do the job)

What is a memorable way to end your story? The end quote is a good way to
sum things up. That doesn’t always work. If you are quoting more than one person with
different points of view in your story, you cannot end with a quote from just one of
them. Giving one of your interviewees the last word can tilt the story in their favor. In
this age of the Internet, you can also end your story with a link to more information or
even your own behind-the-scenes blog post.
 EXAMPLE:

Title A Friend for Wild Birds

Lead sentence The Raptor Trust is a rehabilitation center
for wild birds.
Introduction I recently visited the center, which is
located in Millington, New Jersey. While
there, I spoke with Shari Stern, the director
of education. Her job is to educate the
public and visitors about how to save wild
birds and help those that are injured.
Opening quotation “We take in injured wild birds in the hopes
of healing them, raising them, and releasing
them back into the wild,” Stern explained.
Main body A range of birds have been rehabilitated at
The Raptor Trust and released back into the
wild. They include ducks, geese, finches,
owls, and hawks.

All of the injured birds are found by people.

“We rely on the public to notice when a
bird is in need of assistance,” Stern said,
“and then to actually take the steps to
begin to provide them with help in calling
us to troubleshoot the situation.”

Anyone of any age can help wild birds. Over

the phone, The Raptor Trust can guide you
on how to help an injured bird.

“There are many scenarios where birds are

found,” Stern said. “A cat has caught a bird,
or a bird has flown into a window and, in
this case, it’s going to require medical
attention. That finder can pick up the bird,
put it in a box, and transport it to us.”

“COMPASSION FOR WILDLIFE”

The Raptor Trust helps about 5,000 birds a

year. “That can be a sad number,” Stern
said. “That’s 5,000 animals that were going
about their lives in the wild and wound up
in a situation where they needed human
intervention, human assistance, to solve a
problem.”
 But Stern sees a bright side, too, noting that
passersby took care of the wounded
animals. “That’s 5,000 people who were
observant of their surroundings, who were
engaged in what was going on around
them, who were compassionate enough to
take time out of their day to stop and
evaluate the situation,” Stern said.

The Raptor Trust has a three-part mission

statement that can be viewed on its
website. Stern’s personal mission is to
“inspire compassion for wildlife.” She
encourages kids to seek out areas where
there are birds and keep a list of the kinds
they see.
Closing quotation “I like to help bring light to some of these
animals’ personal histories,” Stern said.
That helps people to start seeing the birds
as individuals, rather than simply as “a
single representative of a species.”
Conclusion Each bird has its own values. It can have
favorite foods, just like us. Stern wants kids
to see and appreciate that individuality.
 Now it’s your turn to write a newspaper article with your partner!

What you have to do?

1. Between you and your partner, decide who’s going to be the informant (the source
of the news) and the journalist (the interviewer).
2. Pick up one newsworthy story from the informant and conduct an interview about it.
3. After the interview is done, write your news story together with your partner using
the basic story outline.
4. The news story is written in English.
5. Use present tense to convey facts, habits, or frequent activities.
6. Use past tense to convey the past events.
7. Present tense can also be used to convey the past events in order to create a sense
of immediacy to the headline. Why does the newspaper want this? A newspaper
tries to sell fresh news so by using a present tense, when the readers read the
headline, they feel that this story is very fresh or recent.
8. Next week, you’re going to exchange your story with the other group and translate
the story that you’ve got from the other group.
9. Group 1 will give their story to group 2, group 2 to group 3, …, the last group to
group 1.
 Write your news story here:

Story’s written by : Aristya, Eric chandra,       (Group: 6)

Translated by :      ,      ,       (Group:      )
Class :7E

Story components SL (English) TL (Indonesian)

Title My precious Sunday      
Lead sentence Sunday could be precious time for some      
people
Introduction Sunday is the day I always waiting forward to      
every week. Days where I can do my favorite
activities and refresh from boredom after
work and college.
Opening quotation Every Sunday, I always have agenda of      
activities, from the morning continues until
the evening. For me, Sunday is a precious
day or a 'moment'. I don't want to spend my
time just staying at home. Besides that, I love
outdoor activities.
Main body When I have free time, I usually go to hang      
out with my friends. Not infrequently, we
make our small events or activities. The
activity we do most often is cooking, at least
once a month, such as shabu-shabu, grill, or
barbecue at one of my friend's houses in
Kuala Dua village because she has enough
space for us to gather and cook. In addition,
my friends have complete Kitchen Utensils
and Kitchen Appliances. Additionally, one of
 my friends works in a store that provides
various types of chicken and beef products,
so we don't have to bother going around
supermarkets to check prices and buy the
meat, making it easier for us to do it.

Another activity is fishing. I usually go in the

morning because I want to fill the time in the
morning if there is no other activity. I rarely
go fishing because it's bothering me enough.
I have to prepare all the equipment before
going, and the way to the fishing location is
quite far because I usually fish in big rivers.
Besides that, not many of my friends like
fishing, so I often go by myself, and it's very
tedious to have no one to talk to.

And the last activity that I look forward to

the most is a trip or traveling. Sometimes I
with my friends go on a one-day trip on a
Sunday or long travel to somewhere during
certain long holidays, if the weather is sunny
and has a destination to go. Lucky I with my
friends were allowed by our parents to go in
long distances for some days. However, this
activity is very infrequency because my
friends and I are busy with routines and have
little free time.
Closing quotation Sunday is long enough to do many activities      
and valuable for me
Conclusion Even if it's just one day, we can do many      
activities to fill the time depending on what
we like.