School Tools

By Margaret Vassilikos

First Published: Summer 2007

Students all across the country are enjoying their summer vacation, and the beginning of the 2007-2008 school year is probably the last thing on their minds.

However, here at the NAA Foundation we have been looking ahead to fall for some time now. The result is a slate of products that can be used by Newspaper In Education, youth content and scholastic journalism professionals to jump-start the school year.

A vital part of the NAA Foundation’s mission is to foster appreciation of the First Amendment, so it is especially fitting that one of our efforts focuses on Constitution Day. Each year, students at schools receiving federal funding must learn about the U.S. Constitution on or around Sept. 17, the date that this historic document was officially adopted in 1787.

The NAA Foundation has joined forces with the Bill of Rights Institute to offer materials designed to help teachers and students celebrate this important milestone in the nation’s history. The package includes a 12-page tabloid section, a five-part serial and an online component.

Our annual Literacy Day Tabloid is ready for use in conjunction with International Literacy Day on Sept. 8. However, given that literacy is a yearround issue, look upon the tabloid and the nine matching in-paper messages as effective tools for the entire school year.

“Robyn Reports: The Nutty Neighborhood Block Party,” a free serial story from the NAA Foundation, can be downloaded for use anytime after the start of the school year. The story revolves around a girl named Robyn, the force behind a weekly neighborhood newspaper, and her band of intrepid reporters. Appropriate for students in kindergarten through sixth grade, this 10-chapter series with accompanying illustrations offers lessons about writing, researching and the value of newspapers to society.

Young reporters also are the inspiration for a product from NewsU at The Poynter Institute. “Coaching Tomorrow’s Journalists,” a free online course funded by the NAA Foundation, is designed to help youth editors and scholastic media advisers shape the training of rookie reporters.

Finally, the ongoing partnership between the NAA Foundation and the Student Press Law Center continues to bear fruit, with podcasts being the latest crop. Young journalists, teachers and scholastic media advocates can get their student press law news on the go, courtesy of a podcast series made possible by a grant from the NAA Foundation. Downloadable for listening on a computer or MP3 player, the podcasts provide legal insight into censorship issues, legislative progress and court cases that affect the student press.

You’ll find more information about each of these products elsewhere in this issue or on our Web site, www.naafoundation.org. With these materials, you will be well-prepared for the start of school... which is right around the corner!

Sincerely,
Margaret Vassilikos
Senior Vice President and Treasurer
NAA Foundation
571.366.1010
margaret.vassilikos@naa.org