I also think work ethic is a valuable lesson. My kids are well exposed to the newspaper world and the job is actually integrated into our homeschooling. We took a family field trip not to long ago with Roger while he took pictures of a flash flood. Last summer, we covered a forest fire as a family.
Old press releases make great typing practice, and my kids are proficient proofreaders. They are used to hanging around the office on deadline day and watching the paper go from being 8 large, blank sheets to a sixteen page newspaper in a matter of hours. Tuesdays are their favorite day, because if anything makes us run into the evening hours then we go out for dinner. They actually PRAY for delays!
We're planning for each child to work there when they are teenagers... we figure that the experience of a weekly paper and the deadlines that go with it will enhance their ability to work anywhere else they choose. And... we're hoping that at least one of them might want to take it over someday when Roger's too tired to do it.
I'm just hoping the judge sees that our paper is not only our means to survive, but an important part of our family too.
-SusanC.