Plan the content and tasks
Design each slide as a page or section of the newspaper. First, clarify the newspaper’s topic, target readers, deadline, and how it will be shared. Then choose sections such as an editorial, class or school news, an interview, an events calendar, and a student corner. For each story, identify a person responsible, approximate text length, visual needs, and information that must be verified; this helps you spot missing or duplicated content.
Prepare draft text before placing it in the presentation. Check whether each story answers who, what, where, and when. Note who said each quote, where the information was verified, and the source of each visual. Don’t present a detail you’re unsure about as fact; verify it or leave it out. Follow your class’s sharing rules when using students’ names, photos, and other personal information.
Create the presentation and choose a starting design
Google’s guide to creating your first presentation explains how to open a new presentation, add slides, and insert text boxes and visuals. On a computer, you can create a new presentation from the Google Slides homepage or open an existing presentation and work on it. To get started, consider whether the template gallery or a blank presentation is right for you.
According to Google’s guide to using templates, a template selected from the template gallery on a computer opens as a new file. The guide notes that templates and some of their features may vary by account type, so check the steps against what you see on your screen. If you can’t see the options, continue by manually editing the title, text, and visual areas in an existing presentation; don’t assume a particular template will be available in your account.
A theme, a layout, and a template are not the same thing: a theme determines the presentation’s overall appearance, such as its colors, fonts, and background, while a layout determines the placement of text and visuals on a slide. Google’s guide to themes and layouts explains this distinction and the supported steps. On a computer, you can choose a different layout when adding a new slide or change the layout of an existing slide.
Create a consistent page layout
On the first slide, you can include the newspaper’s name, issue date, and main headline. Position headings in a similar way on subsequent slides, and plan separate areas for text, visuals, and captions. Consistent formatting for headings and body text helps the pages look like a cohesive whole. If a slide contains too much information, shorten the text or move it to a new slide rather than shrinking the type and making it harder to read.
For steps on creating and editing slides, see Google’s Slides getting started guide. In addition to adding text boxes and visuals, the guide describes how to move, duplicate, and delete slides. Duplicating a page’s layout and changing its content can be useful when preparing similar pages. Before applying changes, check that the correct presentation and slide are open on your screen.
Example: “4-B’s Class Voice”
The plan below is entirely hypothetical. The first slide features the name “4-B’s Class Voice,” the label “Fall issue,” and the main story headline. The second slide covers the class’s book-sharing event; the text explains when the event took place and what the students did. The third slide contains a brief interview with two students about their favorite games at recess. The fourth slide lists upcoming class events. The final slide could feature a short student corner and the names of contributors.
When preparing a real project, note the source you can use to verify each story’s information and the interview date. If you don’t have a photo, you can choose a simple text layout instead of adding an unrelated visual just to fill the space. The class, people, and events in the example are not real; verify the names, dates, and events you plan to use in your own newspaper.
Check visuals, sources, and readability
Choose visuals that relate to the story, note their sources, and check that using them is appropriate. Place each caption near its visual, and check whether the contrast between the text and background makes the text easy to read. Review the slides one by one to make sure text boxes don’t extend past the edges and important information isn’t hidden beneath a visual.
If you used a draft from an AI tool or another source, verify names, dates, quotes, and claims in the stories before publication. Citing a source helps readers understand where information came from; by itself, it does not prove that the information is accurate. Removing content you can’t verify or clearly marking it as uncertain is a more careful publishing choice.
Review access before sharing
Give the presentation a clear name and review all the slides from beginning to end. Consider your target readers when choosing how to share it; don’t give a wider audience access than necessary. Google’s guide to sharing files explains options for restricting access or choosing specific access roles. Sharing restrictions may apply to an organization or school account, so before sending the presentation, check the options on its sharing screen and make sure recipients have access.
Final checklist
- Every slide has a clear title and purpose.
- The text is readable, with no overflow or clipping.
- Names, dates, quotes, and story details have been verified.
- Visual sources and whether their use is appropriate have been checked.
- Sample content and placeholders in the template have been reviewed.
- The slides follow a similar visual layout.
- Sharing access is set appropriately for the target readers.
Frequently asked questions
Should I put each story on a separate slide?
Not necessarily. You can present short, related content on the same slide in separate text areas. If the text feels crowded or the topic is hard to follow, split the content and move it to a new slide.
What should I do if I can’t find the template option?
Start with a blank presentation and create a simple layout you can reuse for headings, text, and visuals. Check your account and the options on your screen; don’t assume a feature you can’t see is necessarily available.
Related how-to guides
You can explore the relevant step in this project in more detail with the guide to making a digital zine in Google Slides. You can explore the relevant step in this project in more detail with the guide to making a résumé presentation in Google Slides.
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