The Long Weekend

In my haste to get out the door for the long weekend, I realized I hadn't clicked the "publish" button on the blog.  My apologies to my millions of followers.  My intent was to leave you with something a little quirkie to make your weekend more enjoyable.

Congratulations, we've made it to the first "holiday" of the school year.  This one comes very early in the semester, but I'll take it.  At the bottom of the blog, I update my Recipes For Overworked Advisers once a week.  For this Labor Day, I wish to leave you with one of my all-time favorites.  It is an easy, chocolatety mess that is sure to make you pack on a few pounds before the morning bell rings on Tuesday.

Enjoy your weekend and enjoy the Mess.

Crockpot Chocolate Mess

1 pkg. Chocolate cake mix (I use Ghiradelli)

2 cups sour cream

1--3oz. pkg. chocolate instant pudding

1—6oz. bag semisweet chocolate chips

¾ cup cooking oil

4 eggs

1 cup water

Coat inside of slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray.  Place all ingredients in cooker and mix until well blended.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours.  Do not lift the lid during the cooking time.  Serve warm with ice cream.  Enjoy!

Guest Blogger

Stephanie Emerson, Arkansas JEA State Director & Wynne High School adviser, is the contributor for today's blog.  Ms. Emerson is known in the state as the Advertising Expert.  Her innovative ideas and ability to motivate her staff to generate ad revenue is amazing.  Attached is the handout Ms. Emerson uses during her summer workshop lectures.  Enjoy and be inspired to change your business plan....

Stephanie Emerson's Handout

Marketing 101

Yesterday, I started the Marketing/Budget/Advertising unit with my beginning journalism students.  The first marketing task was to find a way to promote the yearbook, thus increasing sales. 

Brainstorming was done in groups of three, then each group had to share the ideas with the class.  I'm always amazed at the high level of creativity these students possess.  Suggestions ranged from flying an airplane over the staduim, banner flying in the breeze behind it, to creating a business card to hand parents at the upcoming open house.

The business card suggestion transitioned nicely into one of their first design projects, creating a personal business card.  (click here to see assignment sheet) This year instead of doing the personal business card concept, they will be designing a card for open house.  The hands-on approach to teaching journalism, plus the fact that they will have an immediate product which will be seen by peers and parents is very rewarding for the first year journalist.  Whenever possible, try to integrate an immediate product into the lesson plan.

Notebooks/Collections

For basic journalism students, keeping or collecting items for notebooks is a great learning tool.  I've used this graphics notebook concept for so long, I can't remember where I got the original idea.  A graphics notebook is a collection of items from magazines or any printed material which the student locates to reinforce basic design concepts (logos, spreads, infographics, etc...)

Attached is the format I use, plus other suggestions for notebooks to blend in with other journalistic units of study.

Graphics Notebook

Newspaper Standing Elements

Hopefully, the staff has settled in and is focused on creating a new look for the newspaper.  Here is a PowerPoint to assist in selecting standing elements which suit the style of your paper and encompass all the required elements for a scholastic publication.  Also, consult the scorebooks and manuals you have received from the press associations listed from week one of the blog or information you received from the state press director.  These competitive requirements along with the following presentation should place you on the right track for newspaper design.

Standing Elements PowerPoint