At Elm Street School in Mechanic Falls, there is a group of fifth graders who are learning about writing. They are learning what it means to gather facts and evidence. They are learning how to find a good story and how to interview people.

One of their teachers, Amber Bissonnette, invited me to come speak to her class this past week about how a journalist goes about writing a story. And these kids came with some fantastic questions.

Now, I’m comfortable speaking in front of children, seeing as I’ve been a substitute teacher. Also, I live with a fifth grader, so the mysteries of a 10-year-old’s mind are known to me (mostly).

Marla Hoffman

And while my son’s questions for me typically center around whether or not we can get Subway for dinner and when I’m going to finally get him that Google Play gift card he’s been asking for (can you say “Christmas” with me?), these kids came much more prepared. They asked intelligent, thoughtful questions, and I was impressed.

How long have you worked for newspapers? I’ve been doing this work about 18 years. 

How did you become a journalist? My brother introduced me to the profession when I was just 23 years old and I’ve been doing it ever since. I started as a reporter and over the years shifted into being an editor.

How much do reporters get paid? It varies depending on the company you work for and the position you hold. Whatever you make, you’re not getting into this field to get rich. You have to really love the work you do.

Then the questions started getting more in depth.

How do you find ideas for stories? Everywhere. There’s a story in everything. Talk to people. The grocery store, the library, on the street. There are stories everywhere. You have to be a really curious person. 

How long have you worked for newspapers? Just about 18 years. 

How do you know if a person you’re interviewing is lying to you? (A fantastic question.) Sometimes you can tell if a person is lying to you, but a lot of the time you can’t tell. So you have to fact-check the information people give you. Compare it to official documents, talk to other people and see if the information matches up. No matter what, when you are writing you have to make sure what you write is truthful and based on facts and evidence.

How long does it take to write a story? It depends on how much you are writing. Some stories can take 20 minutes to write up. Other stories you may be working on for several days or more. It depends a lot on the topic, on how many people you’ve interviewed and how much evidence you’ve gathered. Some topics only need a short story to cover. Other topics deserve much more time and many more words.

What’s the last story you wrote? I don’t get a lot of chances to write stories these days, since I am an editor. But, the last story I wrote was a column asking the city of Auburn to do more to make Minot Avenue more pedestrian friendly after a boy was struck in a crosswalk in front of a school.

There were many more questions, but those were some of my favorites.

At 10 or 11 years old, kids are still pretty wiggly and chatty. This group of children, though, were very impressive. They all asked questions and were engaged. They looked at me while I answered them. They asked follow up questions and showed a genuine sense of curiosity. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if any one of them grew up to be a journalist, too.

Here’s the reality kids: It’s an occupation that, if you are doing it right, gets harder and harder the deeper you get into the profession. If you are asking the right questions, each story has the potential to make some sort of impact. If you don’t just accept people at their word, if you dive deeper, if you seek the truth even if it is uncomfortable or angers other people — somewhere in there, if you are lucky and work hard enough, you’ll find a really, really good story.

Those kids’ questions were just right. They were thoughtful and tenacious, qualities that a journalist must have. In fact, they are qualities that all people should have. Speaking without thought and wavering in your convictions are part of what hurts society. The fifth graders at Elm St. School are on the right track, I’d say, and may just grow up to heal this hurt world.

Of all the questions they asked me, though, this may be my favorite one:

Can you write about us? I sure can! I’ve got a column. I can write about whatever I want!

Marla Hoffman is the managing editor/nights for the Sun Journal and can be reached at mhoffman@sunjournal.com.