September 2013…I recently met a parent who told me that her family had added more fruits and vegetables to their plates after reading an article published in one of our school health papers.
Making a positive impact is the gold standard for reporters. Our young reporters are no exception.
“The Healthy NewsWorks newspaper is important for our school community because it informs everyone about ways to eat right, stay fit, and live in a healthier environment,” wrote Kione Gray, a sixth grader last year for Healthy Hopenewspaper at Hope Partnership for Education.
“You get to see the impact that your stories have on people,” wrote Randy Wismer, a seventh grader last year for the Bulldog Bulletin at East Norriton Middle School. “You get to see the pride on people’s faces when their quotes are being read and talked about by the entire student body. And you are the one that made them feel proud. You don’t know how good that makes you feel.”
As Healthy NewsWorks starts its 11th year, our goal is to create even more opportunities for our students to report on important and relevant health topics for their communities. We will deepen our coverage this year with a focus on how children and families can keep their hearts healthy. In the process, our reporters will learn how to identify reliable health information and appropriately source it in their articles, illustrations, and videos.
Many of our reporters also will help create our third book, Leading Healthy Change In Our Communities 2014. They will be leaders, too, encouraging other students to read and contribute to their health newspapers.
We are very excited that several Healthy NewsWorks teachers have devoted part of their summer to developing new lessons and activities for teachers to use with our health newspapers and books.
We are so grateful to our many supporters who donate time, resources, and money to help our students succeed as health journalists for their communities.
We are always on the lookout for experts whom our reporters can interview and community partners with whom we can collaborate. So don’t be shy. Send us an email if you have ideas or suggestions.
Marian Uhlman
Director, Healthy NewsWorks
