Our digital age of journalism is the most exciting time to learn and practice multimedia reporting as a high school student.
Everyone posts, but through immersion-style learning, we’ll teach you how to add power, style and grace to everything you do with multimedia.
In this intensive week-long, residential workshop at UMass Journalism, you will learn the craft of digital journalism through hands-on experience. With a balance of lecture, discussion and actual field-work, you will learn how to shoot quality stills and videos and how to write for broadcast and the web. Also, parents and friends will be able to follow along as you post your progress through social media. At the end of the week, student teams will publish a web story, photo gallery and video, featuring the news stories they created during the workshop.
Spend a week in UMass Journalism’s state-of-the-art digital facilities learning to use the latest video, audio and photography equipment in a team-based environment.
Come join us for a week of challenging and fun hands-on learning as you learn the craft of digital journalism.
GOALS & OBJECTIVES:
By the end of the week, you will:
- Be able to tell video stories and recognize what is a visual story
- Be able to understand the importance of visual storytelling
- Understand what makes for good multi-media storytelling
- Understand the ingredients for a strong social media presence
ASSESSMENTS:
- You will receive feedback and critiques from two long-time professional journalists who are now teaching in the Journalism Department.
WHAT TO BRING:
- Energy/Enthusiasm. We’ll have long days but they’ll be engaging.
SCHEDULE
MONDAY:
- Introductions
- Tour of Facilities
- Course overview – build multimedia website: “Watch Our Stories Grow”
- Overview of current trends in multimedia, journalism and the web
- Organize web accounts (Twitter, Instagram)
- Build site
- Send first Tweets &/or Instagrams
- Visual Storytelling + exercise
- 12:00-12:30 Lunch!
- Composition
- Introduction to DSLR’s
- Break into teams
- Seeing “Red” exercise
- Post photos to web site
- Story Ideas (homework- story ideas for website)
TUESDAY:
- Using video in your storytelling
- Hands on introduction to Canon X10
- Interviewing
- Video shooting & interviewing exercise
- Tweet & Instagram to site
- 12:00-12:30 Lunch!
- Story Meeting
- Research & arrange shoots
- (time permitting-preview tour of shoot location)
- Tweet & Instagram to site
- Write and post “About Us” segments to website
WEDNESDAY:
- Note taking, caption info, organize for shoot
- Teams shoot stories (video & stills)
- Tweet & Instagram to site
- 12:00-12:30 Lunch!
- Intro to writing for web, video & captions
- Begin writing
- Tweet & Instagram to site
THURSDAY:
- Writing II
- Continue writing scripts
- Introduction to video editing
- 12:00-12:30 Lunch!
- Script approval
- Begin editing stories & photos
- Tweet & Instagram to site
FRIDAY:
- Finish editing
- 12:00-12:30 Lunch!
- Post finished products to web site
- Ethics
- Critique & evaluations
- Final Tweet & Instagram to site
- Good-byes
We are hosting these programs in partnership with the Summer Pre-College Program at UMass Amherst. Learn more about their residential program in the new Commonwealth Honors College and the fees associated with the camps: