Print a blank sheet that plans a news article from the headline to the closing line.
Press a line to type on it.
Newspaper article graphic organizer: headline, lead, five Ws, quoteA headline line, a wide box for the lead, a box each for who, what, when, where and why, a box for a quote, and a closing box across the foot.More options
This newspaper article graphic organizer holds a news story before it is written: the facts a reader needs first, one person's exact words and a way to end. It is blank, so it fits school news or a history event.
Read the full guide
Answer the five Ws, then write the lead
Fill in the five W boxes first and write the lead from them. By a rule of thumb, a lead answers most or all of the five Ws, though few leads fit them all: a fact left over waits in its box for a later paragraph.
Most important first
Journalists describe the news story as an inverted pyramid, in which the essential facts come first and supporting information follows in order of diminishing importance, so a reader can stop at any point and still have the story. This graphic organizer for newspaper article writing runs in the same order: the lead at the top, the closing at the foot.
Write the headline last. A story that is already planned is easier to sum up in a few words.
A quote is someone's exact words. Before the interview ends, write down the person's name and role as well.
Questions and answers
What is a news article graphic organizer?
A one-page frame that sorts the facts of a news story before it is written or after it is read. Each question a reporter answers has a box of its own, so a missing fact shows up as an empty box.
What are the five Ws of a newspaper article?
Who, what, when, where and why. Journalists use them as a checklist, to make sure the lead holds the essential points of the story. How is often added as a sixth question.
What are the parts of a newspaper article?
The headline is a brief summary of the article. The byline names the writer and usually sits between the headline and the text. The lead is the first sentence or two, and the paragraphs after it add supporting details.
Is it lead or lede?
Both are in use. The opening of a news story is its lead, and in American English journalists also spell it lede. These sheets print Lead.
All 10 organizers
Plan a news article 3
Inverted pyramid planner: most important firstThree numbered boxes joined by arrows: the lead, the important details, then the details a reader could do without.
Newspaper article graphic organizer: headline, lead, five Ws, quoteA headline line, a wide box for the lead, a box each for who, what, when, where and why, a box for a quote, and a closing box across the foot.
Two to a page: quick news planTwo half sheets with a cut line between them, each with a headline line and three short boxes. For a short article or a class news board.
One part at a time 3
Headline practice: three tries, then chooseThe story in one sentence, three different headlines for it, and a box for the one you chose and why.
Interview notesA chart for an interview: each question on the left and the answer, word for word, on the right, under lines for who was interviewed and their role.
Lead builderFive short boxes down the page, one for each W, and a box under them for the lead written out.
Show all 10 organizers (4 more)
Read a news article 1
Reading a news article: what it reports and who is quotedFor an article someone else wrote: the lead in your own words, who is quoted, the facts and numbers it gives, how the reporter knows them, and what you would ask the reporter.
Younger writers 2
Draw the photo, then write the newsA space to draw the photo over two boxes on primary lines: a caption for the picture, and what happened.
News article organizer with primary linesA headline line and four boxes on primary lines: What happened, Who, When and where, Why.
Filled-in sample 1
Sample newspaper article organizer, filled in: the class tortoiseThe boxes of the opening sheet done for a made-up school news story about a tortoise that went missing over a weekend.
How this list was compiled: Our own layouts and wording; no publisher's organizer is copied. The news writing terms (headline, byline, lead, the five Ws, the inverted pyramid) were checked against the Wikipedia articles News style, Five Ws, Inverted pyramid (journalism), Headline and Byline, read October 12, 2026. The sample is a made-up story. Licence: own work