The Lower School halls have been buzzing this past month with a new project – The Bulldog Broadcast! In any
given week, you may see a handful of fifth graders wearing fedoras and carrying iPads as they interview
students and staff with ‘The Question of the Week’. Another group of fifth graders has spent some of their
recess periods practicing their video editing skills. Add in a small group of fifth graders who spend ‘working
lunches’ brainstorming logos and news segments, and you start to get a picture of how this project is coming
together!
The news video idea started from a need – “How do we foster community in the absence of school assemblies?”
With the energy and ideas from some remarkable fifth graders, this idea has blossomed into The Bulldog
Broadcast, which gives students a chance to see what is happening in others’ classrooms.
Almost everything about the broadcast has been student-directed, including the design of the logo (with help
from D-E’s Communications Department). Reporters practiced asking open-ended questions with exercises
from Story Corps. Editors learned a web-based video editing program called WeVideo. News anchors were
filmed in front of a green screen so that special backgrounds could be added to the video.
Although a lot of work has gone into the making of this first news video, we know that things will get easier as
we become more comfortable and confident in the process! One thing is for sure – the Bulldog Broadcast will
always be “Ready to Report”, giving a glimpse into the halls and classrooms of our wonderful school.
