My Hero
Module 1, Activity 5.3 - Feature Interview
Student Page
(teacher lesson for this lesson)

Introduction:

An important part of every feature story is the interview. However, before an interview ever takes place, there is much preparation to be done. In this lesson, you will begin work on your feature story by doing the necessary background research and interviewing a hero in your life or community.

Activities:

Task One - Objectivity and Your Subject
For your feature article, you will be writing a personality profile on a hero in your life or community. This assignment requires you to do an interview with the person you are writing about, so you will need to choose someone who is still living and has impacted your life or community in some way. Once you have decided on an appropriate person to write about, there are several steps you must take before you interview that person.

To begin, write for 3-5 minutes on your subject. This should be a completely free write where you jot down any words, phrases, or stories that come to mind when you think of this person.

Having trouble getting started?

Since you have identified this person as a hero, you might want to start by writing down why this person is a hero in your eyes.

Once you have written down as much as you can, take a separate piece of paper and organize your thoughts into the following categories:

1. Emotional words or phrases (such as feelings of love or admiration)
2. General descriptors (such as physical appearance or age)
3. Judgments (such as helpful, caring)
4. Other

On the bottom of the page you have used to categorize your thoughts about your subject, find and write down a definition for objectivity (You may want to consult a print dictionary or an online dictionary). What you may notice, when you compare your definition to the notes you have made, is that many of the notes on your hero would not be considered objective.

As a journalist, it is your job to present an unbiased view. How can you do this when you are writing about someone you clearly admire?

Task Two - Beginning Your Research
Start by brainstorming what you know about the person you intend to interview. Use the handout provided to determine where you might start looking for information.

Once you have finished the handout and beginning to embark on your research, your teacher will discuss with you how the process you go through will be graded.

Resources:

- facts/sources handout

Task Three - Reviewing Interview Techniques
In previous lessons you have spent time practicing interviewing skills. Before you begin researching for your feature, it is a good time to review how to properly interview someone.

Find a partner that you can work with for a role play. Before you interview your partner, each of you must do the following:

1. Think about your most recent or your favorite family vacation or outing.
2. Write down as many factual details as you can about the vacation (dates, what you did, who was there). Avoid making any emotional statements.

Hand this information to your partner. Now, each of you must read the information from the other. It is your job to create a list of questions for your partner to learn anything else you can about the vacation/outing.

1. Create a list of questions - Remember that open-ended questions will get you more information.
2. Conduct the interview - practice all the characteristics of a strong interviewer (you should have already discussed these in class)
3. Write a paragraph describing your partner's experience.

Task Four - Diving In

Here are some requirements to consider when creating your feature:

1. Conduct at least one additional interview with someone other than your hero. This will help you to see your hero in a different light.
2. Include at least 3 direct quotations and 1 anecdote.
3. You will also need to do background research. This will require you to have at least 2 other sources, besides your interviews, for your article.

For example:
1. If you are interviewing your grandfather who was in World War II, you will need to do some research on the war.
2. If you are interviewing a coach who played on the National Volleyball Team, you might research the type of training she went through, what their record was, or what the requirements for making the team were.

After you have done your research, you will be ready to draft your feature article. This will take place in the next lesson.