Your Magazine Should Contain the Following

Your Own Magazine

The following are the minimum requirements for you to receive an “A” grade on your Me-Magazine project:

1. Cover 1 2. Table of Contents 1 3. Editorial 2 4. Guest Editorial 1 5. Feature Articles 5 6. Advertisements 4 7. Picture Collage 1 8. Current Hit Lists 5 9. Family Tree 1 10. Family History/Story 1 11. Etc. Pages 3

In addition to the above requirements, the following will also be graded: 1. Neatness 2. Presentation 3. Lay-out 4. Color 5. Length of articles (where applicable) 6. Editing (where applicable) 7. Directions were followed for that particular section of the magazine. 8. Uniform page sizes throughout magazine.

Your magazine should contain the following:

1. Cover (1) A. Front and back of magazine B. Should include title, date, and price C. Select a real (existing) magazine title, and change it into a unique name to show it is your magazine. D. Should be eye-catching and polished in presentation.

2. Table of Contents (1) A. Needs to be computer-generated (not hand-written!) B. The following will be included in your table of contents with their individual titles: 1. Editorials 2. Feature articles 3. Hit lists 4. Family tree 5. Family history/story 6. Etc. pages C. Advertisements are not included in the table of contents. D. The table of contents needs titles for each page (not just “Guest Editorial” or “Feature Article.”)

3. Letters to the Editor (2) A. Uses business letter formatting. (See a grammar textbook for guidelines.) B. Editorial One covers a concern of your choice. This should be a topic in which you feel well-versed so you can write the letter with solid examples to support your opinion. C. Editorial Two covers a concern you have about Timberview. This should be a topic that covers an area you feel needs to change or be improved here at Timberview. D. Both letters need to focus on being persuasive. After all, that is the purpose of editorials: to inform the reader of a particular issue or situation and to convince them to agree with you! 4. Guest Editorial A letter/article written by a parent about you.

5. Feature Articles (5) A. Five articles written about events in your life (see topic idea page for help.) B. Each article will be one-half page typed (single-spaced) or one full page hand-written (single-spaced). C. Each article will be written in paragraph form. D. Articles should be in FINAL form—there should be minimal spelling, punctuation, capitalization, usage, and sentence structure errors. E. Each feature article page should include two visuals related to that particular article.

6. Advertisements (4) A. Advertisements should be for your favorites. B. Advertisements can be for: 1. Favorite products 2. Services you can offer (i.e. Baby-sitting, lawn-mowing, snow- shoveling, etc.) 3. Talents you have (i.e. If you play the piano, you might advertise for piano lessons) 4. Special interests C. Advertisements should be colorful (or purposefully black-and-white.) D. Advertisements should be created by you. (You may not simply cut out an existing ad, or even copy one, and place it in your magazine!)

7. Picture Collage (1) A. Create a collage using a variety of pictures from your life. A collage includes many pictures, not just three or four. B. The collage needs to be uniform in size with the rest of your magazine. C. The collage will have very little white space showing. 8. Current Hit Lists (5) A. You will have a total of five lists, each covering a different category of your choice. B. Each list will have a minimum of 10 items. C. Each list will be prioritized, with #1 being your most favorite. D. At the end of each list, write 2-3 sentences about why you chose your #1 choice to be #1. Your explanation should give specifics. *Don’t say: “I chose ______to be my favorite movie because it’s good.” That tells me nothing about why it’s your favorite movie! Give me details, details, details.  E. Each hit list will have a minimum of one visual to go with it. F. Some ideas to choose from are: 1. movies (Any…they don’t have to be in theatres right now.) 2. books 3. foods 4. celebrities (i.e. tv stars, movie stars, music stars, athletes) 5. tv shows 6. favorite CD’s 7. favorite music groups 8. restaurants 9. sports

9. Family Tree (1) Fill in the family tree handout completely. (Speak with me if you run into difficulties with that.) Include first and last names wherever possible.

10. Family Interview (1)

A. Interview will be with a grandparent. (Speak to me for any specific problems you might have with this.) B. Using the questions given, choose one area to focus on, depending on your interests. (Places to Remember, People to Remember, or Life Events) C. Interview will be presented in final form: 1. Both questions and answers should be typed. 2. Edited (Minimal punctuation, spelling, grammar, usage, and sentence structure errors should be present.) 11. ETC pages (3) Choose two different ideas (you may not do two cartoons, for example) from the following list, and one book review for a book read for a book report this year.

A. A prediction of your future. B. Your favorite recipes (include pictures if you wish!) C. Cartoon (You draw and create it.) D. Craft section (Describe, step-by-step, how to make a craft you enjoy making.) E. Crossword puzzle about you. (Special paper available upon request.) There should be a minimum of 15 clues in the puzzle. F. Word search about you. (Special paper available upon request.) There should be a minimum of 15 words about or related to you to be found in the word search. G. Original poems (Meaning you write them!) H. Hobby page I. Original drawing (Meaning you draw it—don’t trace it!) Feature Article Suggestions:

1. Tell about a turning point in your life. 2. Describe a time of your greatest sadness. 3. Tell about the person who has had the most tremendous impact on your life. 4. Tell about some things that you would put in your life to make you happier. 5. Tell about a situation in which you were embarrassed. 6. Tell about some of the meaningful things your family does together. 7. Tell about an adult (in or out of school) who really helped you. 8. Tell about a class you enjoy and why. 9. Describe, in chronological order, the birthdays in your life and how you celebrated them. (You will probably need to ask your parents about your first few birthdays.) 10. Make a list of the best friends you have had throughout your life. Choose one, and give details about how you met, what you did together, where is this friend now, etc. 11. Tell about any serious accidents or illnesses you have had. 12. Recall all the pets you have had. Describe them. 13. What collections have you had during your life? Describe them. How did you start? Do you still collect them? 14. Tell about trips you have taken. Include maps or pictures if you have any. 15. Write about your favorite home. (It doesn’t have to be your current one.) What are its good parts and bad parts? What are your favorite rooms, etc.? Helpful Hints for Collecting Family Stories:

Listening The first step to collecting family stories is to become a good listener. A good listener gives full attention to the teller, does not interrupt or contradict the facts of a story as it is being told, and offers the teller encouragement with an interested facial expression and body stance.

Interview Questions Interview questions about “Places to Remember”:  Can you describe the house in which you lived when you were a child?  Do you remember the room in which you slept as a child?  Can you describe the houses in your neighborhood?  Where was your favorite place to visit when you were a child?  Where did you go to school? What was in the classrooms?  Where did you go to worship?  Where did you go to shop for food or clothes?  Where did you go for fun and recreation?  Where did you go when you wanted to hide?  Did your family ever move?  Describe the house you lived in when you were first married.  What kind of utensils did you have in the kitchen?

Interview questions about “People to Remember”:  Who lived in your house with you as a child?  How many brothers or sisters lived there?  Can you describe your father or mother as you remember looking at them when you were small?  Who visited your house when you were young?  Any relatives remembered? Grandparents or Aunts and Uncles?  Who were your favorite cousins?  Who were your neighbors?  Did you have any favorite teachers?  Who was the best cook in the family?  Who was the smartest, richest, kindest, or most religious?  Did anyone in the family have some unusual characteristics?

Interview questions about “Life Events”:  Immigration: When did the first family member come to America? Where did they come from? How did they get here? Are any family members still abroad?  Courtship: How did you meet your spouse? How long did you know each other before you were married? Can you describe your wedding?

 Work: How did you earn a living when you were young? What was your first job? What was your favorite job?

 Holidays: What were your favorite holidays? How did your family celebrate those holidays? Did you have special holiday customs/traditions or foods?

 Vacations: Did you ever go on a vacation? Where? Who went with you? What did you do for fun?

 Births: Can you describe the birth of your son or daughter? Where were you? Who was there? How did you choose his or her name?

 Daily Life: How did you travel from place to place? Did your family have a car? What were your favorite pastimes? How did your children behave? Me-Magazine Grade Rubric

Name of Editor: ______

Cover /10  Front and back of magazine, color  Include: Title, date, price  Title is an existing magazine title, changed to represent you  Eye-catching; polished in presentation

Table of Contents /5  Article titles; page numbers  Typed  Advertisements not included in contents list  Titles for each page

Editorials (2) /20  Business letter format  One environmental issue; one personal issue

Guest Editorial /5

Feature Articles 1 2 3 4 5 /50  Five articles about events in your life  One-half page typed or full page handwritten  Paragraph form  Edited  Two visuals for each article

Advertisements 1 2 3 4 /40  Ads are for your favorite products & represent you.  Colorful & Original (created by YOU)

Picture Collage /10  Diverse pictures which represent who you are  Uniform in size with the rest of your magazine  Little white space is showing

Current Hit Lists 1 2 3 4 5 /10  5 lists of your top ten in a particular category  2-3 sentences explaining your #1 choice Family Tree /5  Completed as much as possible (First & Last Names)  Colorful

Family Interview /10  Interview is with a grandparent (unless permission was given otherwise)  Focused on one area  Questions & answers are typed and edited

ETC Pages 1 2 3 /10  Two different ideas  One book review  Each page is original (you created it)

Editing /10

Presentation/Style/Polish /25  Neatness  Presentation  Lay-out  Color  Directions were followed for each section  Uniform page sizes throughout magazine

Total Points _____/210 Letter Grade _____