This document provides strategies and guidelines for writing a news report for the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT). It explains that a news report must be objective, factual, and about a specific event. It provides the formula for writing a news report, which begins with the most important details of who, what, when, where, why, and how, followed by additional less important details. The document also contrasts the differences between a narrative and a news report, and provides examples of passages that would and would not be suitable for a news report.

1. OSSLT PREP
STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS
Adapted from
GECDSB

2. INTRODUCTORY WARM-UP ACTIVITY:
HOW TO FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS
Complete this task using the handout that you have been given or use your own paper.
Read the following set of instructions carefully and completely before doing anything
1. Read all instructions first
2. Count to 5 silently
3. Write your name in the top left hand corner of the page
4. Circle the word ceiling in instruction #5
5. Stare up at the ceiling for 4 seconds
6. Write today’s date in the bottom left corner of the page
7. Write the name of your favourite song here: ____________________
8. Turn your head to the left and the right
9. Cross out instruction number ten
10. Print your last name backwards here: ____________________
11. Turn your paper over for two seconds, and then turn it back to the instructions
12. In your head, sing the first line of Oh Canada
13. Ignore every instruction except #3 and #15
14. Only follow instruction numbers three and fifteen
15. If you finish before others do, sit silently and don’t give away any hints
 ANSWER: The only thing you should have done is write your name in the top left hand
corner of the page.

3. STRATEGY NOTE #6:
How to Write a
News Report

4. HOW TO WRITE
A NEWS REPORT
A news report is an objective,
factual report about an event.
 Objective: do not express personal
opinions
 Factual: include all of the facts
 Event: write about something that
happened

5. FORMULA for writing a news
article
 A news report also
follows a formula.
 What is this
formula?
 It begins with the
most important
information: Who
does what? When did
they do it? Where did
they do it? Why did
they do it? and How
did they do it?
Then additional (less
important) details are
added.
 These details provide
extra information that
could be deleted from the
story if necessary.
 Why is it organized this
way?
 The least important details
go at the end so that if the
editor of the paper had to
shorten an article, he or
she could cut from the
bottom without ruining the
story.

6. YOUR TASK ON THE
OSSLT IS TO:
􀃆 look at the picture and the headline
􀃆 imagine an event that may have taken place which
logically connects to the picture and the headline
􀃆 think about the who, what, where, when, why and
how of the event
􀃆 write your news report, making sure it is a report, not
an interview and that it does not include
any personal opinions

7. Also make sure:
􀃆 your ideas are clearly organized
􀃆 you have checked your work for any
spelling, grammatical, or punctuation
errors
􀃆 you have not told a story or
described the picture

8. A NEWS REPORT IS
OBJECTIVE WHEN …
 The third person point of view is the
perspective or viewpoint of someone
outside the report. The writer does not
use “I” because the report is not a
personal one. On the OSSLT, use third
person point of view to keep your report
objective.

9. PERSONAL VOICE VS.
OBJECTIVE VOICE
First Person (Personal) Third Person (Objective)
 I am tuning out the
political process.
 My parents don’t like
photo radar.
 I think photo radar
cameras have been
limited to small
 towns.
 Young people are
tuning out the
political process.
 Many people don’t
like photo radar.
 Photo radar cameras
have been limited to
small towns

10. YOUR TURN!
Change the use of the first person (personal) point of view
to the third person (objective) in the following sentences.
1. The kids at my school protested the proposal to ban
unhealthy food from schools.
2. Not only does eating properly reduce obesity, but I think it
makes people happier,
healthier and productive.
3. I would like to eliminate junk food from my diet and have
more energy.

11. ANSWERS
1. Students at a local school protested the
proposal to ban unhealthy food from schools.
2. Not only does eating properly reduce obesity,
but it also makes people happier, healthier and
productive.
3. Many people would like to eliminate junk food
from their diets and have more energy.

12. A NEWS REPORT IS
FACTUAL WHEN…
The purpose of a news report differs greatly
from the purpose of a narrative.
 A news report provides information and
facts, while a narrative tells a story. When
writing a narrative, there is a lot more freedom
to tell the story however you wish, but when
writing a news report for the OSSLT, you need
to provide facts about an event in an
objective way.

13. NARRATIVE VS. NEWS
Narrative
News Report for the
OSSLT
 Can be subjective,
personal
 Can use first person (I,
me, mine, my, we)
 Can be creative, fanciful,
uses dialogue
 Tells a story
 Is always objective,
detached
 Only uses third person
(he, she, it, their)
 Uses fact, statistics, eye
witness accounts
 Provides information
about an event

14. YOUR TURN!
For each of the following passages, circle the one
which would belong in a news report.
1. a) About 150 people heeled and wheeled their way
along the city’s north-south trail
yesterday afternoon for the local leg of the Third Annual
Greater Niagara Circle Trek.
b) Joanna woke up refreshed. It was the day of the Third
Annual Greater Niagara Circle
Trek and she was ready for it.

15. YOUR TURN!
2. a) I watched the final game of the Stanley
Cup Playoffs with much excitement. My
cousin was leading the scoring for the team I
was sure would win.
b) All of Prince Edward Island watched the
Stanley Cup Playoffs with much excitement.
One of their own led the scoring for the
winning team.

16. YOUR TURN!
3. a) “I couldn’t breathe - there was so much
smoke,” Derek choked as the firemen rushed
past him into the burning house.
b) Local resident Derek Jones was rescued from his
burning home last night. When
asked how he felt, Jones answered, “I couldn’t
breathe - there was so much smoke.”
ANSWERS: 1. a) 2. b) 3. b)

17. A NEWS REPORT IS
ABOUT AN EVENT…
On the OSSLT, the news report can not be
in the form of an interview, and cannot
include any personal opinions - it must
focus on one event which logically
connects to the picture and the headline.
Take a look at the
following picture and
headlines and choose the
best event on which to
base a news report.

18. IF THE TITLE TO THIS PICTURE WAS, “TAKING
A STAND,” WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING
WOULD BE AN APPROPRIATE EVENT ON
WHICH TO
BASE THE NEWS REPORT?
a) Workers discuss
safety issues
b) Why I think we
should have the right
to strike
c) Workers strike
against their employer

19. IF THE TITLE TO THIS PICTURE WAS, “A BAD DAY
FOR THE LEAFS,” WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING
WOULD BE AN APPROPRIATE EVENT ON WHICH TO
BASE THE NEWS REPORT?
a) The Philadelphia Flyers
need a new coach
b) The Leafs lose an
important playoff game
c) I think the Leafs should
win the Stanley Cup
ANSWERS: 1. c) 2. b)