Year 5 The Titanic: journalistic report writing worksheet

“Journalistic tone and word choice” is free to print, with no account. It is the first sheet in the Year 5 English unit “The Titanic: journalistic report writing”, for children aged 9 to 10, and takes about 20 minutes.

Print it on A4. The child's pages come first; the answers, and what each wrong answer tells you, are on the grown-up page that follows. Weeks 18 to 20 of the year, 12 sheets in the unit.

Free sample · answers on the last page

Journalistic tone and word choice

Name: ____________ · Date: ____________
Year 5 · English · about 20 minutes
Answers are on the grown-up page

Today I can spot journalistic tone and explain why word choices matter.

A Look back3 min

1.
In ‘Ali kicked the ball’, which word is the verb? Circle it.
Alikickedball
2.
Sort these words into naming words and action words.
riverjumpedstormsailed
Naming word Action word
3.
In ‘The cold sea rolled’, which word describes a thing? Circle it.
coldsearolled

B Watch me, then you4 min

Two people write about the same night at sea. Read the two sentences and find the one that sounds like a journalist.

A tidy wooden desk under a green lamp with a closed notebook

Watch me

A harbour at night with a lit lighthouse and a dark, still sea

Informal: The ship sank and lots of people died.

Journalistic: It is believed that the ship sank, and many lives were lost.

‘It is believed’ tells the reader the fact is not fully confirmed.

Now you

1.
Which sentence sounds like a journalist? Circle one.
The captain was a total idiot.It is alleged that the captain made an error.Honestly, the captain messed up.
2.
Which word makes a fact sound not fully confirmed? Circle one.
reportedlyyesterdayenormoussank

C Your turn8 min

Circle the journalistic sentence in each row. Read every option before you choose.

A lifeboat tied up at a quay at dusk on a calm sea

1.
Circle the journalistic sentence.
The lifeboat crew were brave heroes.Reportedly, the lifeboat crew rowed out in the dark.
2.
Circle the journalistic sentence.
Sadly, the lights went out, which was awful.The lights went out, and people were scared.It is believed that the lights failed around midnight.
3.
Circle the journalistic sentence.
Everyone was shocked by the cold.At approximately midnight, the ship hit ice.The ship hit ice, and it was dreadful.The captain was clearly a hero.
4.
Circle the journalistic sentence.
Honestly, the rescue was a mess.Terrible news came from the harbour.Reportedly, the rescue boats were slow to arrive.What a shocking night that was!

Say it out loud: Which clue words told you the sentence was journalistic? Which words gave away an opinion?

D Spot the mistake3 min

An empty stone quay at dawn beside a grey sea

Kit says: “‘Honestly, the captain was a fool.’ That is a journalistic sentence.”

1.
Is Kit right? Explain in your own words.

E Think deeper4 min

A journalist is careful with facts that are not yet confirmed. Change the tone of this sentence.

A large iceberg floating in a dark, calm sea under starlight

1.
Rewrite this sentence in journalistic tone: ‘Loads of passengers got stuck on the ship, which was awful.’ Explain one word you changed and why.

How did it feel?

I can do it Nearly Not yet

For the grown-up

Journalistic tone and word choice · 2 minutes to read

Answers, and what a wrong one tells you

A

1. kicked If your child circles 'ball', they have found the thing acted on. The verb is the action word. Ask: what did Ali do?

2. Action word: jumped, sailed · Naming word: river, storm If your child puts 'sailed' with naming words, they may be looking at the ending. Ask: is it something you can do? Then it is an action word.

3. cold

B

1. It is alleged that the captain made an error.

2. reportedly

C

1. Reportedly, the lifeboat crew rowed out in the dark.

2. It is believed that the lights failed around midnight.

3. At approximately midnight, the ship hit ice.

4. Reportedly, the rescue boats were slow to arrive.

D

1. Look for: Says Kit is wrong and names personal opinion, an informal word like Honestly, or a judging word like fool, rather than journalistic tone. If your child says Kit is right because the event is real, point out that real events can still be reported with opinion. Ask: which word judges the captain?

E

1. Look for: A rewritten sentence in a neutral, formal tone, such as Reportedly, many passengers were trapped on board, with no slang like loads or opinion like awful, and one changed word explained.

Words to use

Say“Which words make this sound like a reporter, and which words sound like someone's opinion?”

Instead of“That is a good report, well done. Don't worry about the words.”

After the sheet

Read a short news item aloud together. Ask your child to tap the table each time a word sounds careful, then talk about which words sound like opinion.

Tick what your child got right in StudyDen. Anything missed comes back in a later Look back box, so there's no need to redo the sheet.

The rest of this unit

11 more sheets come with a StudyDen plan, in teaching order:

Finding and sorting sources(with a plan)
Planning the report opening(with a plan)
Opening a Titanic report(with a plan)
Planning the Titanic paragraph(with a plan)
Conjunctions in the Titanic report(with a plan)
Editing in three rounds(with a plan)
Who is doing the action?(with a plan)
Three kinds of complex sentence(with a plan)
Voices from the dock(with a plan)
Planning a closing paragraph(with a plan)
Closing the report(with a plan)

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