Brainstorm some ideas for the newsletter with your team, jotting down the ideas in a notebook. Even if they are not suitable for the current issue, they may be developed for a future article.
Get a newsletter template such as Publisher or choose one from an online source. When reporters and columnists write their articles, insist that they limit themselves to a prescribed number of words and type the article into the formatted column. They can then email the articles to the publisher.
Assign team members to find samples of other parent newsletters. Examine the names of the newsletters, the layouts, the typefaces, the nature of the articles, the use of photographs and graphics, and the article content.
Decide on the standing columns that will appear in every issue. For a parent newsletter, for example, you might feature school news, child safety, educational issues, funding, how-to articles (such as how to find a tutor), and media and technology.
Consider interviewing a counselor, administrator, teacher, parent or child. Interviews can give you background material for other articles and add interesting quotes and color to the newsletter. Feature an article by an expert in a field related to education whenever possible.
Write your articles. Each article should have an eye-catching headline. Start off with a hook to snag the reader's attention, and put the most important information up front. Don't forget to include all the pertinent information (the who, what, when, where, and why or how).
Use photographs and graphics to add excitement to your newsletter.