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Writing a Feature Article: Headlines, Leads, Quotes and Structure — Answers

Answer sheet with model answers and success criteria for the Year 10 informative writing worksheet.

Success TutoringWorksheetsAnswer sheetYear 10 · English · Informative Writing

Writing a Feature Article: Headlines, Leads, Quotes and Structure — Answers

Part A: Parts of a feature

Answer each question.

1.Match each part of a feature article to its job.
  • headline
  • standfirst
  • lead
  • body
  • kicker
  • A short, eye-catching title that sparks curiosity.
  • Paragraphs that develop the story with facts, quotes and examples.
  • The final line or paragraph that leaves a lasting impression, often echoing the lead.
  • The opening paragraph that hooks the reader, often with a scene or anecdote.
  • One or two sentences under the headline that sum up the angle of the story.

Answer: headline → A short, eye-catching title that sparks curiosity.; standfirst → One or two sentences under the headline that sum up the angle of the story.; lead → The opening paragraph that hooks the reader, often with a scene or anecdote.; body → Paragraphs that develop the story with facts, quotes and examples.; kicker → The final line or paragraph that leaves a lasting impression, often echoing the lead.

2.How does the lead of the model differ from a typical hard news lead?
  1. AIt answers who, what, when, where and why in one sentence
  2. BIt opens with a vivid scene and a person rather than a summary of facts
  3. CIt has no quotations
  4. DIt is written in the future tense

Answer: It opens with a vivid scene and a person rather than a summary of facts

Hard news leads sum up the key facts quickly; feature leads often draw readers in through a scene and a human story.

3.What is the angle of the model feature?
  1. ABread prices are rising
  2. BNight-shift workers do essential but invisible work, with costs and rewards
  3. CHospitals need more nurses
  4. DHow to bake bread at home

Answer: Night-shift workers do essential but invisible work, with costs and rewards

The standfirst and body focus on night workers who keep the city running while others sleep.

4.Why does the writer include the line "Your weekend is everyone else's Tuesday"?
  1. ATo give a date for the article
  2. BAs a memorable quote that shows the personal impact of night work in a relatable way
  3. CTo explain how hospitals are scheduled
  4. DTo make fun of the nurse

Answer: As a memorable quote that shows the personal impact of night work in a relatable way

A strong quote gives a real voice to the issue and makes an abstract idea concrete.

Part B: Craft skills

Answer in full sentences.

5.Explain two differences between a feature article and a hard news report.[2 marks]

Answer: Any two: features are longer and explore an issue in depth while news reports give the key facts quickly; features often open with an anecdote or scene, while news leads sum up who, what, when and where; features have a more personal, descriptive voice and can show the writer's perspective, while news aims to be objective; features are less time-sensitive.

6.Find where the model moves from the personal story to wider facts. Why is this move important?[2 marks]

Answer: The second body paragraph, beginning "Lucy is one of thousands of people". It widens one person's story into a bigger issue, so readers see that the anecdote represents many people and the article has significance beyond one bakery.

7.Write a punchy alternative headline for the model article. Use one technique such as alliteration, a pun or a question.[2 marks]

Answer: Examples: "Working While the World Sleeps" (alliteration); "Who Keeps the Lights On at 3 a.m.?" (question); "Rising Early, Rising Dough" (pun). Any headline under ten words with a clear technique.

8.Rewrite this flat lead as an anecdotal lead: "Many students take on part-time jobs while they are still at school."[2 marks]

Answer: Model: "At 6 a.m. on a Saturday, while her classmates are still asleep, sixteen-year-old Ruby is already pulling on an apron and switching on the coffee machine." (Any lead that opens with a specific person in a specific moment.)

9.Here is an interview note: "The volunteer said she feels proud when the garden produces food for families." Turn it into a direct quote with an attribution, and explain why direct quotes are useful.[2 marks]

Answer: Model: "When I see families leaving with bags of vegetables, I feel so proud," says volunteer Grace Ellis. Direct quotes add an authentic human voice, make the article more vivid and give evidence for the writer's points.

10.Suggest a kicker (final line) for the model article that echoes the lead.[2 marks]

Answer: Model: "Outside, the sky is turning pink. Lucy takes the last tray from the oven, switches off the light, and goes home to sleep as the rest of the city wakes up." (A closing image that circles back to Lucy and the bakery.)

Part C: Your turn

11.Write the opening of your own feature article (200–250 words) about a group of people whose work or effort often goes unnoticed in your community (for example: school cleaners, volunteer coaches, crossing supervisors, animal shelter workers). Include a headline, a standfirst, an anecdotal lead, at least one invented quote with attribution and one wider fact or observation. Label each part.[10 marks]

Model answer: Headline: The Coaches Who Never Get a Trophy Standfirst: Every weekend, unpaid volunteers give up their mornings so that hundreds of children can play. We met the people on the sidelines. Lead: It is 7:15 on a frosty Saturday, and Daniel Okafor is pacing out a soccer field with a bag of orange cones over his shoulder. His own children grew up and stopped playing years ago. He keeps coming back anyway. Body: "The first time a shy kid scores a goal and looks over at you, that's it, you're hooked," Daniel says, laughing. He is one of more than forty volunteer coaches at the local junior club, and none of them are paid. Between them they run training twice a week, wash the uniforms, fix the nets and drive players to away games. Club records show that without volunteers, more than half of the teams would have to fold. Yet when the end-of-season awards are handed out, the coaches are usually the ones holding the camera, not the trophy.

Success criteria:

  • Includes a headline and standfirst that establish a clear angle
  • Anecdotal lead opens with a specific person, place and moment
  • At least one direct quote with correct punctuation and attribution
  • Moves from the personal story to a wider fact or observation
  • Engaging, descriptive voice suited to a feature rather than hard news
  • Each part named; accurate spelling, punctuation and paragraphing
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Marking tips

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