Grades 9–12

Byline takes 9th–12th graders on a wild quest for stories left untold on the forgotten corners of history. As they step into the role of a 1930s-era newspaper reporter, students train under Editor Daniel Schwabauer, who takes students under his wings to teach them everything he knows. Along the way, and before they even realize what they are doing, students learn to write great academic essays! Byline is one full school year of high school English—and 1 high school English credit!

The set includes:

• 74 video lessons on DVD
• Training Manual
• Reporter’s Notebook
• Printed copies of the fictional newspapers The Metro and the Retro Metro
• Teacher’s Guide

Your student will study the work of great journalists of the past, including:

• Rudyard Kipling
• Mark Twain
• Nellie Bly
• Ernest Hemingway
• Jacob Riis
• James Connolly
• H. L. Mencken
• Jack London
• Joseph Pulitzer
• Damon Runyon
• Lincoln Steffens
• Ida Tarbell
• Ray Stannard Baker
• Grantland Rice
• Russell B. Porter
• Mary Ann Shadd
• William Allen White
• Richard Harding Davis

Skills your student will learn:

CRITICAL THINKING:
If you can’t think well, you won’t write well. Writing is about putting thoughts onto paper. Observation, inference, analysis, and interpretation are essential to writing.

SEPARATING FACT FROM INTERPRETATION:
Byline inoculates students against propaganda. Propaganda isn’t about telling lies. It’s about creating interpretations of facts. The student who learns to separate fact from interpretation is much harder to indoctrinate.

WRITING INTELLIGENTLY WITHOUT JARGON:
Byline challenges the common misconception that obtuse writing impresses college professors. Clear writing is the key. No young writer should have to resort to jargon and fancy-sounding sentences. Byline frees students to write directly and from the heart.

FOLLOWING LEADS:
Whether working to uncover a specific story on the orders of the Editor or following a lead of their own, students will discover how an intriguing detail can be a clue to an untold story, submerged in time. Byline offers your student reporter “100 Tips” about notable, heroic, or bizarre individuals, each designed to be the beginning of a chronojournalism adventure. Learning to conduct research has never been more fun!

SUPPORTING EVIDENCE:
Good journalists back up their exposés. So will your student reporter. Byline is a great introduction to the ethics of quality citations. And you know what academic essays require? Citations. With Byline under their belt, students will see citations for what they are: the evidence of first-class reporting.