Public art, street safety, and noise pollution are among the topics our Healthy NewsWorks student journalists will investigate during the school year ahead.
They will explore how their schools and neighborhoods play an important role in people’s mental and physical health through the theme, “Caring for Our Community and Ourselves.” Our young health journalists will be encouraged to develop articles and videos that are relevant to students, families, and the broader community. They will also express in their own words what communities and individuals can do to help people thrive.
Healthy NewsWorks expects to work with about 500 students in grades 3 to 8 through our Core Reporter program in at least 16 schools in Philadelphia, Norristown, and Camden. The reporters also will have opportunities to contribute to two magazine editions in the Spring and Fall of 2024. Teachers told us that our first magazine edition published in April 2023 was a hit with their students and they requested two issues a year. “There was a little bit of everything in the magazine,” one teacher wrote in a survey. “Each student had something they were interested in because the magazine had so much information throughout.”
Also during the school year, some Core Reporters will be involved in our video production. The videos, like the school newspapers and magazines, will all spotlight people who are making our communities healthier and safer and will be produced under the guidance of Healthy NewsWorks staff in partnership with classroom teachers in schools.
Meanwhile, our youngest reporters will learn and report for their school newspapers’ Cub Corner sections. Teachers can choose among three Cub Reporter lesson tracks focused on heart health, nutrition, and social and emotional learning for students in grades K to 3. The nutrition track is new this fall and is called Super Snackers. Its goal is to help young students think of snacks as small amounts of nutritious foods consumed between meals.
Healthy NewsWorks also offers a program for classrooms that don’t participate in Core Reporter and Cub Reporter lessons. They can contribute articles, reflections, and illustrations to their newspapers. We encourage our participating schools to give as many children as possible an opportunity to be part of their school newspaper. By doing so, children will be excited to read the issues when they arrive.
Our reporters will be busy and productive. Please follow their work on Instagram, Facebook, and our website.
Let us know what you think of our reporters’ work. We’d love to share your feedback with them. There’s no better motivator for writers than knowing that other people are reading their articles and taking them seriously. Send us an email at editor@healthynewsworks.org and we will publish selected letters on our website or other publications.
We look forward to hearing from you!
