Inverted Pyramid

1. Three good leads to use are the "how," "what," and "why" lead.
2. These leads are better because they better express what the most important point of the article is, and can grab a reader's attention with the lead.
3. A direct quote is a quote that you take right from the mouth of the person who spoke, word-for-word. 
4. Direct quotes elaborate on the previous transition.
5. I thought my Wi-Fi proposal was a pipe dream,” she said. “I want to thank the donor for being so generous.”
6. An attribution identifies the source of the quote. 
7. An attribution is the noun, and then the verb.
8. A transition is what links paragraphs together and makes them all related.
9. Three types of transitions are fact transitions, indirect transitions, and partial quote transitions. 
10. Checklist for News Stories:
1. Are the most important and recent facts first? 
2. Is the story accurate? Are the sources identified fully? 
3. Are the paragraphs short? 
4. Is the sentence structure varied in the story? 
5. Is the story neat and double-spaced so that it is easy to read? 
6. Does your story flow? Did you use the transition/ quote formula? 
7. Did you use active voice?
11. Some pitfalls that I could encounter are editorialism, using first and second person, bad CUPS, (Capitalization, Usage, Pronunciation, and Spelling), paragraphs that are too long, misspelling names, and trying to use every piece of information there.
What Went Wrong:
Original Story: 
During the 2010-11 school year, our school has reported 22 fights so far. Last year, the school had 18 total fights. “One of my friends got in a fight, but he didn’t start it. He was defending himself,” said freshman Andy Opel. In response to the escalating fights, the school district hired the Teen Conflict Resolution Team to help students solve disagreements through non-violent solutions. After March 23, any student caught fighting on campus must complete a TCRT non-violence workshop, in addition to normal disciplinary actions. “Students have to learn how to solve life’s problems without violence, and this program will teach our students just that,” said Mr. Brown. “Now students will get suspended and be forced to attend this program,” Opal said. “That’s just too much.”
New Story:
     Because of the escalating fights dotting the school, a TRCT non-violence workshop was placed in order to prevent students from fighting more. The ones involved will be the Teen Conflict Resolution Team, starting their work from March 23 and on, and will also enforce disciplinary actions along with the workshop. 
“One of my friends got in a fight, but he didn’t start it. He was defending himself,” freshman Andy Opel said.
     This program was also important to bring in so that students will be able to gain skills in this workshop that will better their path into adulthood. 
“Students have to learn how to solve life’s problems without violence, and this program will teach our students just that,” said Mr. Brown. 
The benefits students will see from this will certainly be thanked when they use them when they go into jobs and need to problem solve for work, according to the opinion of the school staff. 
     In the wake of the 22 fights through this year, which is still going, it is a sharp increase from the 18 fights of last year. 
“Now students will get suspended and be forced to attend this program,” Opal said. Hopes are that this workshop will bring it down to an eventual 0.