First grade journalists at WTA have published their first articles in the newspaper “WTA First Grade News”! On Friday, June 3, students enjoyed a leisurely breakfast with family members. They drank from their favorite mugs, and lounged in their robes or pajamas as they enjoyed reading the newspaper together. The students made a variety of healthy muffins to serve to their guests.

This culminating event started way back in September as the class reviewed letter formation and letter sound. They wrote their first sentence together. They learned to write original sentences and wrote their own first original sentence for homework. They moved into writing their first paragraph together and then wrote their own individual first paragraphs about scribble monsters. Next was learning about newspapers and how articles are written, and they wrote their first group article about a nursery rhyme. Finally, each student picked a topic and newspaper section, drafted their first outlines on graphic organizers and set to work on their articles meant for publication. They learned first-hand that first drafts get changed a lot! After many edits and rewrites they were ready to draw or find illustrations. Then it went to the layout department, and was ready for print.