Newsworthy | 40 Writing Prompt Task Cards | Grades 5–6

These 40 unique and engaging writing tasks bridge an authentic link between reading and writing.

While students in Years 5–6 can usually identify facts in an information text, many stumble when it comes to inferencing and weighing up different perspectives. They may find it hard to work with opinions and facts, question the reliability of sources, or pull together multiple viewpoints into one report. These tasks position students as investigative journalists, giving them authentic opportunities to practise those skills in a unique and engaging way.

Newsworthy turns strange events, legendary mysteries, and natural wonders (you know, the things kids love) into 40 unique press releases. Packed with eyewitness accounts, unanswered questions, and space for speculation, they challenge older students to read closely, infer meaning, and write for a real-world purpose.

What’s Included:

• 40 High-Interest Press Releases (that is enough for one a week across the school year) on the world’s weirdest mysteries, unexplained events, and natural wonders. Ready to print, the task cards are four to an A4 page, with the option of printing back to back or single sided. Once prepared, they are easily stored in photo boxes.
• Student-Friendly Instructions. For each news brief, students follow five simple steps as they investigate and prepare a report. There is a tracking sheet too so they can independently monitor which topics they have covered.
• Modelled examples perfect for modelled lessons, or small-group and independent writing tasks.
• Teacher Overview. Curriculum-aligned guidance with explicit links to Australian Curriculum: English and the Literacy General Capability.
• High-quality writing tasks. Our Qwik-Writes are not filler writing tasks. They provide opportunities for students to read, think, and write with purpose.

Some of the skills students will apply:
✔ Inferencing: weighing up eyewitness accounts, reading between the lines, and drawing logical conclusions.
✔ Background Knowledge: connecting prior knowledge with new information from the text.
✔ Vocabulary: applying and extending topic-specific words and phrases.
✔ Point-of-view and critical thinking: reporting fairly while acknowledging multiple voices.
✔ Text structures and language features: learning to use the features of news reports and press releases.
✔ Evidence-based writing: justifying statements using details from the release or research.
✔ Creativity: blending fact, inference, and imagination to produce a polished news report.

Why Teachers Love Newsworthy:

• Aligns with the Science of Reading (SoR) explicitly linking reading and writing, building background knowledge, vocabulary, comprehension, and inferencing.
• Provides authentic opportunities to apply literacy skills to an engaging, real-world text type.
• Supports students to separate fact from opinion, weigh evidence, and craft clear informational texts.
• Designed for independent application with clear instructions and self-monitoring tracking sheets.
• Ready to use. Just print, laminate, and go with 40 numbered press releases. That is one for every week of the school year.
• Easily stored. The individual cards fit neatly into the Kmart Photo and Craft Storage Box for durability and easy access.

Perfect for:

• Years 5–6 (Australian Curriculum v9.0) or Year 4.
• Middle School Literacy (Grades 5–7, Common Core).
• Literacy rotations, writing workshops, enrichment activities, or independent writing.

✍️ Add a spark of intrigue to your classroom writing! Your students will love chasing the scoop with Newsworthy.