1. Practice stories -- Editing and headlines and news priority.
 Completed by the end of class, Mon., Oct. 5 but not turned in.  No points -- practice only.   This initial editing exercise  will require students to apply basic editing skills (correct spelling, journalistic English and AP style), write headings and exercise news judgment (dealing with priority in a manner that includes leads, story structure and story placement). Students will have practiced beginning editing skills by working on several stories out of class and in class under deadline pressure.  Three stories will be prioritized, and, two of them, along with headings, placed on a page. The headings (as well as all stories) should attract readers and accurately represent the story. For this assignment, headings (headlines) will likely be within a range of 20 to 42 points in size (depending on priority and placement) and will be 1, 2, 3 (or sometimes maybe 4 lines long) -- or maybe a deck head will be used. Arial type should be used for headings, and Times should be used for story text -- headings are downstyle and flush left with regular spacing between words; body text is justified. Students should NOT alter the widths of story and headline boxes on the template provided. The length of the boxes may be changed (think of them as blinds that can move up and down on windows).
Format: Complete stories in class and place the stories on the InDesign template provided; this assignment will not be turned in for points but will be a practice version of the Stories 2 assignment.

2. Stories 2 -- Editing and headlines.
 Due Wed., Oct. 14 at 11:15 a.m. (145 pts. possible).  This assignment is similar to Practice stories but embodies more complexity in the story editing -- including legal/ethical issues, as well more elements in news value, AP style, accuracy and spelling -- and more facts in need of checking, as well as basic English errors in need of correcting. (The professor will be a resource for holes found in stories.) In the assignment, students have freedom to choose the heading point sizes and number of lines of headings (for this size of a page a range between 20 and 42 points is still an advisable range). Arial must be used for headings, and 10-point Times must be used for story text. Body text should be justified; headings should be flush left and downstyle (deck heads may be centered, however).
Format: Place the stories (with headlines) on one InDesign page; turn in by assigned time to avoid a late penalty. Pilgrim will grade one of the three stories and its heading closely (100 points total with the story worth 85 pts. and its heading, 15 pts.). He will grade holistically the remaining stories and their headings. These stories and placement of all stories on the page, sizing (priority), quality of editing and headings will be worth up to 45 points. [In each story, retain all important information (priority) -- grade will be reduced for important information that is missing. Do not cut needlessly. Do not rewrite stories -- change story only if an error can be named. Do not alter widths of the text and heading boxes on the template.]

3. Basics Quiz 1 & 2 -- Journalistic English basics and AP style quiz in class Wed., Oct. 14 at beginning of class (100 pts. possible); Basics Quiz 2 over grammar and punctuation on Mon., Nov. 2 at beginning of class (100 pts.)
On Quiz 1 students will be required to demonstrate AP and basic English skills knowledge; on Quiz 2 they will be tested on punctuation and tested further on basic English skills.
Format: Complete the basics exam WITHOUT aids and hand in.
NOTE: Participation/attendance for the quarter counts for 80 points. Students lose 5-10 points for each absence. A crucial part of participation points is centered around student familiarity with "Fearless Editing." Students should keep up with assigned reading and be able to discuss the book's concepts and contents (and apply them to assignments).

4. Stories 3 -- Complex story editing, wire story trimming or combining/updating.  Due Mon., Oct. 26 at 11 a.m. (200 pts. possible).  This editing assignment will be include editing and writing of headings for more complex stories, and working with wire copy. It will also have more sophisticated legal/ethical considerations, as well as work with news value, spelling, AP style, fact checking and English basics. 
Format: Four stories will be edited and placed with their headlines as INDIVIDUAL InDesign documents. Each will be printed out separately. One story and its heading will be graded closely (150 total points -- story worth 125 points and its heading, 25); the other stories and their headings will be examined and graded in a holistic manner (up to 50 points possible). Stories 3 must be turned in by time assigned in order to avoid a late penalty.[In each story, retain all information (priority -- place less important information at the end) -- do not cut story length unless instructed to do so (several stories will be written to a specific length). The assignment includes combining of stories, updating stories and cutting stories for a digest. Do not rewrite stories -- change story only if an error can be named. Write the heading assigned (remember flush left for the heading -- but if assigned, deck heads may be centered under the heading), and place the story in the appropriate number of columns beneath the heading. Be certain to ask about holes you find in stories.]

5.  Large format design (Page 1) -- deciding on news and images worthy of the front page of a broadsheet newspaper and then using InDesign to complete the design.
Due Mon., Nov. 9 at 11 a.m. (100 pts. possible) in an Editpro folder and in reduced-size InDesign b&w printed version.   Before this assignment is completed, we will cover basics of layout and page design on InDesign during class.  For this project, students will use the Clarion news page template (justified Times for body copy and flush left, down style Arial for headings) and stories and photos as assigned.  Students will need to edit the stories and do the layout. They should note, however, that some stories are writethrus (rewritten and edited), which will save them editing time. They will be assigned a story that will need to be followed on the Web, with the latest information being used at deadline. They will choose ONLY among the photos given (but may be given freedom to select a few others from media Web pages) -- and should consider infographic possibilities (such as time lines, bioboxes, fact boxes, etc.) derived from material provided in the assignment.

6. Infographic -- Due Mon., Nov. 16 by end of class (20 pts. possible -- 5 pts. possible for flawed infographic -- 25 pts. possible total)    This assignment introduces proper use of maps, charts and diagrams. To begin, a flawed infographic (with typed reasons attached) found in print media is due at the beginning of class (5 pts.). Fearless Editing Ch. 10 and material by former New York Times graphics editor Emily Weiner lay the foundation for the assignment requiring students to create an effective infographic due by the end of the class period (20 pts.).

7.  Large format design (feature page).  -- Due Wed., Nov. 25 at 11 a.m. (100 points -- due the day before Thanksgiving; students may submit the assignment early if they desire)   This assignment asks students to design a Clarion broadsheet feature page by using stories, photos and graphics provided. Typography will also be emphasized, and students will be given freedom to chose a heading font (from those available the CF202 lab) other than Arial, which has been used up to this assignment.  This is an opportunity to explore the more open and creative layout practices used on contemporary feature pages. Color theory from "Fearless Editing" and from additional material taught in class should be applied. The project will be completed in InDesign. It will be turned in as an 8.5x11 thumbnail and placed in a folder Pilgrim provides in Editpro

8. In-class final PROJECT -- Students will complete a final design project (see below) in class during the final two regular meetings of the quarter -- Pilgrim will assign this project in class on Mon. Nov. 24, but it will be completed Nov. 30 and Dec. 2. A REQUIRED rough draft of the project will be due at the end of class on Mon., Nov. 30. The final draft will be due at the end of class on Wed., Dec. 2. (Pilgrim will be available for e-mail conferences about the project during the final exam time)
Due Wed., Dec. 3 by the end of class  150 points.
Final design project description
Small format design.  Refine design skills and concepts emphasized in the feature page design assignment by completing in InDesign a two-page magazine layout. Students will need to edit the stories and cations, apply typography, infographic and color learning, write headings and complete a two-page magazine layout (with special attention to bleeds, white space, points of entry, color, etc.). For qualified students, an online version of the project using the design material assigned may be available -- or for PR students, a newsletter is a possible option. See Pilgrim for details.