ePALS

ePALS, the world's largest K-12 online classroom and electronic penpal network connects 1.5 million students and teachers in 22,110 registered classrooms from 115 countries. Sign up at http://www.epals.com/

Video Field Trip to the “Washington Post”

MediaPro’s Field Trip video – “The Washington Post” is an excellent way to take your entire class on a tour of the news departments, production rooms, and printing operation of the Washington  Post. This video is SO good, NESPA has bestowed our “Exceptional Product Award” to MediaPro for this video. For more info: www.mediakids.com or write to: MediaPro, 935-2 A1A North, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082. Toll free: 888-861-8104. email: mediapro@freewwweb.com.

The Writing Company

The Writing Company, a division of Social Studies School Services, has an excellent selection of writing and journalism books. Request their catalogs on “Journalism,” “The Writing Company,” and “4-8 The Writing Company.” Call them at 800-421-4246 or find them or find them at http://writingco.com.

World Pen Pals

Students, grades 4 through college, are invited to request a pen pal overseas. Pen pals, close in age, are offered by gender/continent with all correspondence in English. Directions and helpful writing tips are furnished. Request an application by mailing a stamped self-addressed envelope to:

WORLD PEN PALS
P.O. Box 337
Saugerties, NY 12477

Ideas For Signing up Subscribers

Jean Tarr, Newspaper Adviser at Magsig Middle School in Centerville, OH offers these suggestions.
    We struggled with the issue of how to distribute our newspaper to students. We finally stumbled upon a solution that has worked well for us the past two years. During open house each fall, we ask advisors (homeroom teachers) to speak briefly about our school newspaper and literary magazine. Then they pass out subscription forms to parents. A $2 subscription fee covers four issues of the student newspaper as well as a copy of the magazine.
    Our fall conferences are held before our first issue is published, so before conferences our staff members prepare subscription forms for students who are not yet subscribers. Advisors distribute these forms to parents at the fall conference.
    In addition, our staff offers a prize (pops and chips) to the advisory group that has the highest percentage of subscribers. From our student body of about 575 students, we have about 175 subscribers.               

Share those Newspapers

Mary Ellen Switzer of Del Mar Heights Elementary School in Del Mar, CA includes a short reminder in their newspaper, “Heights Writes,: requesting that their readers recycle their copies of the newspapers so the staff can send them to other schools on the NESPA roster. Mary Ellen keeps a special box in the media center for the recycled newspapers.

Grant Money Available

Seed Money Grants for Student Newspapers are available from the Newspaper Association of America Foundation to help establish or revive student newspapers. Grants can be used to create a newspaper where none exists or stabilize or strengthen newspapers that are at risk of going under. Each year the Foundation will award up to 20 Partnership Grants for the coming school year. Deadline for the year's Student/ Newspaper Partnership Grant is April 30. For more info, call the NAA Foundation at 703/902-1732 or email at: woods@naa.org. Applications are on the NAA Foundation website: http://www.naafoundation.org/artpage.cfm?aid=6582.