As the second semester draws closer, it is time for our freshman, sophomores, and juniors to start thinking about the classes they intend to take next year. There’s the obvious, english, math, science, but when it comes to electives, some students draw a blank. One of Dee-Mack’s relatively new electives, currently in its second year, is… you guessed it, Journalism class! Journalism class is sponsored by our lovely Ms. Hammond, but something I often hear as a journalism student is “What do you guys do?” So, as an overarching response to every time us journalism students have been asked this, this is Behind the Scenes: Journalism Edition!
OUR PROCESS:
We have a two week rotation, and two “groups” that our class is divided into. Group one has their articles published one week, and group two follows the next week. So ultimately, each student has two weeks to write their article, which is most commonly ample time for our journalists to complete their articles! Most students identify their pitch (topic selection) as the most difficult part of their articles. Ms. Hammond is kind enough to give the journalists a ton of freedom with their topics, allowing each student to write about something they are truly passionate about and interested in, rather than assigning topics. She finds that this freedom helps students not drag their feet as much and get their articles in on time! Once the article is written, we upload and format it into our website, select a cover photo, and submit it to Ms. Hammond to publish!
SOCIAL MEDIA:
The @dcmjournalism page on Instagram is run by our very own Ava Finch, Vinnie Weeks, and Norah Scroggs. These three were all in journalism last year, so they were deemed the most fit to run our social media! All of the students in Journalism are able to pitch ideas for funny videos or trends they want to see pursued on the account. If a student completes an article that is applicable to make an Instagram carousel, they complete this carousel in Canva and send it to Ms. Hammond to be posted! Our social media account is one of the things that makes journalism class so special, and each student’s contribution really makes our social media feel personal!
WHY YOU SHOULD TAKE JOURNALISM:
If you enjoy writing, I highly recommend journalism! The freedom that comes with the class is a huge reason of what makes it so enjoyable. Journalism is also something that helps students polish their time management skills, and highly aids their writing skills. Having strict deadlines for the articles really helps students to learn how to make efficient use of their time. As someone who edits other students’ articles from time to time, I have seen just through our first semester that a lot of our journalists are really getting the hang of their writing style! There are so many benefits to joining journalism class, and my only regret is that I did not join it sooner! So Chiefs, when you are making your schedules this year, make sure to give Journalism an extra thought!
