5.2.4

Writing an Informational Article

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Writing an Informational Article

The style of a newspaper article changes if it is an informational article or an opinion article. Informational article is written to provide facts about a news event.

Informational articles

Informational articles

  • Informational articles begin with a headline.
  • The headline is a short summary of what the article is about, using only a few words.
  • Headlines take out unnecessary words to shorten them.
    • For example: ‘Fundraiser raises thousands for local charity’ rather than ‘A fundraiser has raised thousands of pounds for a local animal charity’.
Headlines

Headlines

  • Headlines aim to grab the reader’s attention.
  • Some headlines, such as in tabloid newspapers, may include puns to be humorous.
    • Puns are a play on words.
  • Headlines may also be in the form of a question to help the reader begin to think about the topic or shock them.
    • Headlines may aim to shock the reader so that they want to read the rest of the article.
Subheadings

Subheadings

  • Subheadings can be used in informational articles to separate the article into different sections.
    • Each section should answer one of the 5 W’s: Who, What, Where, When, and Why.
 Non-fiction writing methods

Non-fiction writing methods

  • A range of non-fiction writing methods and a clear tone should be included in newspaper articles.
    • To provide information, facts and statistics are included in an article.
  • A journalist may interview people who were involved in the event.
    • Journalists can interview experts on the topic (called an ‘expert opinion’) and include direct quotations from them in the article.
Tone

Tone

  • The tone of the article will depend on the topic:
    • A serious, emotive tone may be used for a tragic story such as a disaster.
    • A humorous tone may be used for more light-hearted or less serious events and topics.
Jump to other topics
1

Spelling

2

Punctuation

3

Grammar

3.1

Word Classes

3.2

Conjunctions

3.3

Writing Coherently

3.4

Verbs

3.5

Modal Verbs

3.6

Phrasal Verbs

3.7

Subjunctive Verbs

3.8

Sentences

3.9

Tenses

3.10

Adverbials

3.11

Language Techniques

4

Decoding Words

5

Reading & Writing

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