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Elgin Elementary School students recently witnessed the magic of a newspaper coming to life.
The EES newspaper class, officially known as Our Voice, has been a contributing entity to the Elgin Courier for several years now. However, students were curious as to how their work ultimately became revealed in print form. The kids were able to satisfy their curiosity at a recent field trip to the Granite Media Partners printing press in Circleville.
“The kids were always so excited when they saw their work, but there was this gap of, ‘How did we go from writing this, to typing it and now to the newspaper? What does that in between look like?’” said program leader Sarah Ozuniga. “The trip to the printing press definitely made that gap a lot smaller.”
According to Ozuniga, students asked inquisitive questions and were engaged throughout the tour. The class consisting of third and fourth graders learned about the printing process as a whole, how shipping labels are created and the distribution process. The trip was supposed to happen in 2020, but COVID-19 put a halt on their long awaited adventure.
Ozuniga said there were only 15 students a part of the school newspaper a few years ago. There are now 44 students, indicating a rising interest in journalism among EES students.
Ozuniga believes the newspaper program has allowed students to become more confident in their ability to research, ask bold questions and obtain information they find interesting.
“I think that our group gives them access to those resources, gives them the tools that they need to be able to expand their thinking,” Ozuniga said, “and it gives them permission to have those questions and to research on their own and maybe find the answers that they’re looking for.”
Ozuniga also spoke about the number of bilingual students in her class and how they often get to practice their translating skills, given that Our Voice produces a considerable amount of content written in Spanish.
Ozuniga added that the growth of the school newspaper reflects Elgin Independent School District’s support of students having options to pursue topics of interest.
“We’re constantly striving to make sure that kids have an opportunity to do things that interest them that maybe they didn’t have before,” Ozuniga said. “Our current leadership is so pro-extracurricular activities, and I’m looking forward to seeing how else the program grows and what other ideas students have.”
