Newspaper Report — Writing Pack

British & IGCSE › Checkpoint 6 English (Cambridge Primary 0058)

A newspaper report (also called a news report) tells readers about a real event quickly, clearly and fairly. It is one of the most important genres to learn for Paper 1, because a news report for a school newspaper about a recent school or local event has appeared in a recent Checkpoint 6 paper. If you can write a strong report, you are ready for one of the most likely tasks in Section B.

1. What is a newspaper report?

A newspaper report is a type of recount written for the public. The first paragraph gives a short summary of the whole event. The next paragraphs give more details and the words of people who were there. The last paragraph explains how the story ended or what will happen next.

How your writing is marked (25 marks)

Newspaper report or story? Report or article?

Many Year 6 pupils lose marks because their report turns into a story or a diary. Look at the differences.

2. Features of a newspaper report

3. How to structure a newspaper report

Reporters use the inverted pyramid: the most important information comes first and the smaller details come later. A reader who reads only the first paragraph should still know the main story.

Always cover the task bullets. If the task says 'include what happened, how people reacted and what will happen next', give each bullet its own paragraph. A report that misses a bullet cannot reach the top band in Creation of texts.

How to start: lead paragraphs you can adapt

• The big fact first: More than three hundred pupils cheered on Thursday afternoon when Nile Star School won the city football cup for the first time.
• An ordinary day that changed: What began as a normal school day on Monday quickly became one to remember when a family of ducks marched into the playground at Green Hills School.
• The community is talking: In an event that has left the whole school talking, Year 6 pupils raised a record 15,000 pounds at their charity fair last Saturday.
• Numbers that surprise: Five hundred books, two hundred volunteers and one very busy weekend: that is the story of the new library at Sunrise Primary School, which opened yesterday.
• Short and dramatic: A sudden storm brought Sports Day at Oasis International School to an early end yesterday morning, but nobody was hurt.

How to end: closing paragraphs you can adapt

• What happens next: The school has announced that the competition will become a yearly event, and pupils are already planning their next designs.
• The result: By the end of the afternoon, the playground was clean again and the ducks had been safely returned to the nearby lake.
• A quotation that closes: “We will never forget this day,” said one proud parent as the families left the hall.
• Still developing: The cause of the fire is still being investigated, and the school will update parents later this week.
• Looking back: It was a day that the whole community will remember for a long time.

4. Useful phrases and vocabulary

5. Strong sample answers

Here are two strong reports: one for a school newspaper about a school event, and one for a local newspaper about an event in the town. Read the notes to see where each mark is earned.

Timing plan for Section B (about 30 minutes)

6. Common mistakes

Practice tasks

1. Write a report for your school newspaper about a visit from a famous author to your school. Include: • what happened during the visit • what pupils and teachers said • what will happen next. (Plan only.)

   Show answer

   Headline: Story Star Visits Sunrise School. Byline: By [name], Year 6 Reporter. P1 lead: On Wednesday morning, children's author [invented name] spent three hours with 150 Year 6 pupils in the school library, talking about her new adventure book. P2: events in order — reading aloud, question time, writing workshop, book signing. P3: eyewitness quotation from a pupil (admitted / exclaimed). P4: quotation from the librarian or head teacher (praised / explained). P5 what next: the school announces a new writing competition, and the winners' stories will be printed in the school magazine.

2. Turn this weak opening into a strong lead paragraph: 'It was Thursday. We went to the zoo. I was very excited. A monkey took my hat.'

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   Example: 'Sixty Year 6 pupils from Palm Tree School had an unexpected surprise at Giza Zoo on Thursday morning when a cheeky monkey snatched a pupil's hat and refused to give it back.' It is third person, gives Who, What, When, Where in one sentence and starts with the most exciting fact.

3. Rewrite as a correctly punctuated direct quotation with a better reporting verb: the coach said we trained every day and we deserved to win

   Show answer

   “We trained every day, and we deserved to win,” explained coach Samy Fouad. (Speech marks around the exact words, comma inside the closing speech mark, capital letter at the start of the spoken words, reporting verb + name and role.)

4. Change these active sentences into the passive to make them sound more formal: (a) The firefighters rescued the cat. (b) The head teacher cancelled the trip.

   Show answer

   (a) The cat was rescued by the firefighters. (b) The trip was cancelled (by the head teacher). The passive puts the event first, which is useful in news reports.

5. Write three headlines for a report about a Year 6 class that won a national science competition. Use alliteration, rhyme and a question.

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   Alliteration: Super Scientists Scoop Top Prize. Rhyme: Class Shines with Science Designs. Question: Who Built the Best Robot? (Keep each one short and capitalise the main words.)

6. Find two problems in this sentence from a news report and fix them: 'I think the match was brilliant and the crowd goes wild when Ahmed scored.'

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   Problem 1: 'I think … brilliant' is the reporter's opinion. Problem 2: the tense changes from past to present (goes). Fix: 'The crowd went wild when Ahmed scored the winning goal. “It was brilliant,” said one fan.'

7. Write a report for your local newspaper about a new park that opened in your area. Include what the park has, what visitors said and what is planned for the future. (Plan only.)

   Show answer

   Headline: New Park Brings Green Joy to [area]. Lead: The new [name] Park opened its gates to hundreds of families on Friday afternoon in [area]. P2: what it has — playground, cycle path, 300 trees, a small lake (numbers). P3: eyewitness quotation from a child or parent. P4: official quotation from the park manager about why it was built. P5 future: a café and an outdoor library will be added next year, plus the opening times. Keep third person and past tense.