Creating A Classroom Newspaper Page 22
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35Lesson #4
Writing Opinions
Teacher background:
There are several places in a newspaper where a writer’s opinions are appropriate. The
most obvious place is the editorial, where the editor displays his or her viewpoints on a
topic. There are also opinion columns and editorial cartoons located on the editorial or
op-ed page, a page opposite the editorial page where guest writers express their opinions.
Personal opinion columns also appear in other parts of newspapers. For example, the
sports page may contain personal columns in addition to news stories about sporting
events. The business page may contain a personal column by a business analyst. Readers
also may find articles labeled “analysis;” these contain interpretations of events in
addition to facts. It is important for students to recognize differences between editorials
and columns, which reflect opinions, and news stories, which report facts. In addition,
letters to the editor sections offer readers an opportunity to voice their opinions.
Editorial pages and opinion columns are daily examples of our right to free speech,
guaranteed by the First Amendment to the Constitution.
Purpose:
Students will
1. learn the characteristics of opinion writing
2. identify vocabulary used in opinion writing
3. list editorial topics for the class newspaper
4. write an editorial or draw an editorial cartoon
5. identify examples of opinion writing other than editorials
Before you start:
1. Select a current national or local issue – one that has many sides – and take a
class poll on students’ stands on that issue. Record the number of votes for
each side on the board.
2. Have several students explain their positions to the class
3. Ask students how they could communicate their positions to people outside
the classroom, either in the school or in the community.
4. Explain to students that they can communicate their ideas and they can read
about the opinions of others on the editorial pages of the newspaper.
Learning Activities”
Level I
1. Compare an editorial with a news story.
2. Talk about vocabulary used in an editorial. Brainstorm with students to
generate words that mean “opinion.”
3. Discuss editorial cartoons and letters to the editor. Show an example of each
to students.
4. Ask students to express their opinions about a picture or headline in the
newspaper. List on the board issues that emerge from the students’
discussion.
5. Direct students to write one sentence expressing an opinion about one of those
issues.
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