This activity consists of the class creating a video segment for a weather forecast. The students learn how to put on a show with graphics: a blue screen or a framed insert. In either case, students learn how to frame their shots, learn what "white space" is, and how to move about the stage or speak to and compliment the picture. Here is where they learn that television is really more than a "radio with pictures". The script-writing techniques involve learning how a picture is to complement the script and not duplicated by it. and how to properly frame their pictures. On-air talent gets to practice working on camera with a picture background that they need to reference during their segment.
| TOPICS | LINK PAGES | SESSION TYPE |
| Visual Awareness | Visual Literacy Project | Workshop |
| Weather Segment | ||
| Weather Mapping | Presentation | |
| Fontanelle Weather Page | ||
| Using Satellites | ||
| TV Weather | ||
| Weather Pals | ||
| Weather Cyber Schoolhouse | ||
| Weather Disasters | ||
| USA TODAY Weather Page | ||
Inter-disciplinary Subjects & Standards
Earth Science, Debate, Script-writing, Television special effects
Projects & Activities
You are to produce a 2-3 minute "weather report" using ONE topic that you find in the above links. You will learn how to utilize the "blue screen" effect, just like the meteorologist does on the local weather reports on your local television station. You may use any topic you chose, but the final show must include a graphic that is displayed on the blue screen. Try to locate a web site from a local or regional television studio and see how they present the weather One has been provided in the DIGGING DEEPER section.
How you will be evaluated
Your presentation will be graded on style and presentation. Select one or two members of your group to play the part of the TV personality. You need to pick one aspect of weather that you did not know anything about before and demonstrate that you know enough about that new topic that you can adequately explain it to someone else through your weather report.
Digging Deeper
Additional Internet Site(s) to help you with the terminology:
Writing for TV has many similarities and some differences from writing for other mediums. The web links have instructions on how to read television scripts. Not only do they include proper writing techniques, but they also show the various short-hand labels TV personnel use to provide directions. These projects and activities are to introduce you to the various styles and techniques associated with writing for television and show how they vary from other styles and techniques you have learned for school.
| TOPICS | LINK PAGES | TYPE SESSION |
| Script Writing | ||
| Successful News Scripts | Workshop | |
| The TV Writer's Homepage | ||
| How to Write the News | ||
| WRITING IN A CONVERSATIONAL STYLE | ||
Inter-disciplinary Subjects & Standards
English
Projects & Activities
Script Reading
You are to pick a favorite topic (like sports, local events, school happenings, etc.) and prepare a 2-3 minute "spot" about that topic, using script notation.
Script Writing
After reading about writing techniques and styles, you will participate in a workshop session to learn the importance of writing in active vs passive voice. You will try out your abilities in a "get the lead right" session designed to test your ability to eliminate the verb "to be" from your news writing vocabulary.
You are to bring in several pictures about a single subject or topic that can be put into a story line. You are to build a story board and arrange the pictures on to a project board in sequence. You then take still shots of the photographs, learning how to frame the shots, time them, and to move from one to another. You may use post-production editing to move between shots ( wipes, fades, cuts to black,etc.). The duration of each shot is up to you (you may make one shot longer or shorter for emphasis, for example), but the entire footage may be no longer than three minutes. Then, set the photos to music.
Stop action is the next logical step from still shots. Instead of still footage telling the story, the still shots are arranged, using action figure toys, clamation figures, or toy vehicles that are made to appear to move across the screen through a sequence of scenes. This is the first introduction of "persistence of vision". Each shot lasts no longer than one second each. You are to make a 30 second video (30 1-second frames) where the shots represent a moving event. Again, you may use post production for your cuts, and set the whole thing to music.
Using an interview checklist, you are to conduct a 1-3 minute interview of any person you choose. The person may be real, or you may interview an actor who represents some famous person you would like to interview. The questions should be planned out, in case the answers you receive aren't the ones you expect.
You are to prepare and film a 3 minute video instructing someone how to do a certain task: play a certain position at a sport, make a cake, play a video game, etc. The video should include a beginning (tell them what you are going to tell them), a middle (tell them) and an ending (tell them what you've just told them). The video should include a script as well as footage that actually demonstrates the task you are explaining how to do.
How you will be evaluated
Each project involves script preparation of some type. The script should compliment the footage and not duplicate it. Your project will be reviewed for style and proper use of notations.
Specific evaluations:
Still Shots & Stop Action
You will be evaluated on how your "story" pieces together. Is there a logical flow from one picture to the next? Does it tell a story? Is there a "beginning", "middle", and "end"? Does the music equate to the pictures. How long/short is the final footage?
Interview
How valid are the questions? Do you elicit more than simple "yes" and "no" answers? How is you on-screen technique? Do you remember to pass the mic back and forth? You will be evaluated on the choice of shots (over the shoulder vs frontal view), your ability to edit in footage of the topic being discussed or inserts of you listening to the interviewee, etc.
Instructional Video
You will be evaluated on how well you use the beginning/middle/end technique. You need to show footage of the task being done with voice-over. Does your video actually "teach"something?
Digging Deeper
More Internet links on script writing.
In an electronic world, we are constantly being invaded by some group who is trying to "sell" us something. Often, news shows are defined by ratings, rather than objective decisions as to what makes a good news story. In order to become educated as to what is coming at us, we need to understand the basic economic principles under all television operates: the ratings System.
Television Ratings/Rankings
| TOPICS | LINK PAGES | SESSION TYPE |
| TV News | How to Watch the News | Survey |
| Media Filters | Discussion | |
| TV Ratings | Research | |
| Flash Consulting | ||
| Media Central | ||
| What are SMART Ratings? | ||
| What is CONTAM? | ||
| Who are Those Nielsens Anyway? | ||
| What is a "Share", a "HUT", a "PUT"? |
The Math Behind the Ratings
| TOPICS | LINK PAGES | TYPE SESSION |
Surveys |
Validity | Workshop/Presentation |
| Reliability | ||
| Sampling /Blocking |
| TOPICS | LINK PAGES | TYPE SESSION |
| Media Literacy Network | Workshop/Presentation | |
| Media Awareness Network | Workshop/Presentation | |
| New Mexico Media Literacy Project | Workshop/Presentation |
Inter-disciplinary Subjects & Standards
Family & Consumer Sciences, Media literacy, Math (Statistics)
Projects & Activities
How to Watch the News
You are to watch the evening news each night for five days, logging the story content, order of presentation, as time spent on each topic. Use the questionnaire found in the handouts page. Get together with your teammate and summarize your results. It is best if each of you watch a different station. Make a chart that represents these results and be prepared to discuss in class your results and answer the following questions: What impression does/can the news make about your community? Does the news reflect current trends or is it creating these trends? How do ratings affect what is shown on the news?
Network Audience Ratings
In this web-based "scavenger hunt, you will learn: How are television stations paid for what they do, What is that based on, and What other factors affect what is shown on TV.
This is a follow-up to class discussions about television news and will help you determine the answer to the following ultimate question: Do you think ratings affect what is shown on the news?
Using the links found in the above chart, your team is to look up the answers to the questions found on the handouts page. The winners will be determined at the end of the session and will be based on which team has the most complete answers. These questions and answers will be used as a basis for a short class discussion.
What role do/can sponsors play in determining what gets shown on TV? What are the temptations of companies like Disney have on what shown on the news based on their owning ABC? Does/did the government ever censor the news? What is the difference between the terms "mis-information" and "dis-information"?
You are to make up a chart of these filters and be prepared to discuss them.
How Can 1,250 Make One Million?
How can businesses sample only a small portion of their market and be able to make predictions about the entire population? You will learn how this works in class and then you will do some research on the net.
The key terms you need to learn about are blocking, sampling, reliability, and validity.
You are to design a method of sampling students at your school to determine your answer with regard to time required for the sample, validity and reliability of the results, cost involved the best student authored TV show for the above activity. Justify the practicality of the plan.
How you will be evaluated
Your charts and notes are to be recorded in your journals which will be collected. You will also be graded in your participation in class discussions.
Present the plan to class and convince them your plan is best. Be sure to include documentation for your justification. Your grade will be based on your notes in your journal and your presentations and rationale.
Digging Deeper
Additional Internet Sites:
Videos to be shown in class:
Against
all Odds: Inside Statistics; PBS, The
Annenberg/CBP Collection.
The Chronkite Report: Headlines and Sound Bites, (1997), The Discovery Channel.
No study of the foundations of broadcasting can go without an understanding and appreciation of its "defining moments". Rather than turn this course into a history course, it may be a lot more (and certainly more fun) to utilize the medium of television to create video products that depict an era. The burning question you are trying to answer is does television simply reflect the times, or does it have the power to actually create and influence styles and events. Because some of the ethical issues surrounding television are not simply "black and white", possibly the best way to approach them is through a debate. Debates also make good television...
Inter-disciplinary Subjects & Standards
Global Studies, History, Media Literacy
Projects & Activities
You are to prepare arguments for a debate on the topic of censorship vs the 1st Amendment, as discussed in Global Studies. You will be assigned to take one side of this issue or the other through a drawing of straws. The debate will be videotaped, with highlights shown to other classes.Is censorship warranted in any case? Where does parental responsibility fit in? Are v-chips the answer? What do feel about the new television ratings system? Your group should be prepared to participate in a discussion about these issues. In order to prepare yourself, you need to know a little about both sides of the issues. The Internet sites below will give you plenty of additional ammunition. You may also use surveys to capture public opinion from your peers.
Copyrights
What is a copyright? How does this differ from a patent of trademark? Does a work have to be registered before it is copyrighted? Where did copyrights first come from? What affects do they have on our TV productions classes? The are several sites discussing this issue... why? You need to know what a copyright is in order to apply it to a list of items your teacher will present you with.
In keeping with the spirit of copyrights, each team is also responsible for logging e-mail or other communications with owners of any copyrighted materials seeking permission their to use it in conjunction with this project.
Decades Project
The purpose of the decades project is for you to capture on video the essence of the music, favorite movies, television shows, styles, and fads of the chosen decade. Understanding that the turn of any one decade doesn't necessarily signify an end of and era or the beginning of another, you may slip over a little, in order to show trends and issues. Your video can be the combination of still shots, stop action, footage, clips, Hyperstudio or Powerpoint presentations, and/or digitally created avi files. You are to prepare a 5-7 minute video showing your overall view of the selected decade.
How you will be evaluated
Debate
You will be graded on your ability to present your side convincingly. Two teams will compete against one another. You will be judged on your ability to present convincing arguments. As the debate will be video-taped for later viewing, the camera and production crew will be graded on their ability to properly frame their shots, make effective use of editing, etc.
Decades Project
Your teacher will assign your group to one of the periods in question. As television reflects the times, your group needs to learn a little about the events happening during each 10-year block. The period breakdowns represent the time when major changes and shifts took place. You are to provide a video production indicating major themes of your selected time period. Your presentation should outline 5-10 current events issues and stylistic themes of the times that were reflected in television shows. You need to include any pictorial representations that will help get your point across. Your presentation will be graded on its content, premise, hook, story-line, and delivery.
Digging Deeper
Additional Internet sites to help you with television history:
Additional sites to help you with learning how to conduct a debate:
Books for reference:
Tube of Plenty. Erik Barnouw, New York: Oxford University
Press. 1990.
MBC Encyclopedia of Television. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Press, 1996.
Videos to show in class:
Quiz Show, Paramount Pictures, 1995
45/85: Forty Years of US History, ABC Television, 1985
50 Years of Television History, HBO, 1996
Learning how to utilize technology, especially the World Wide Web provides you with many opportunities to increase your problem solving capabilities. developing economical searching techniques, developing well-thought out web pages, and learning how to add animation and graphics in post production all lead you to a process of anticipating problems, and logical and sequential thinking. the projects and activities are designed to give you practice in applying and appreciation for these skills.
| TOPICS | LINK PAGES | SESSION TYPE |
| Web Searching | Web Searching Techniques* | Workshop |
| Hyper-Studio | Workshop | |
| Multimedia/Animation | Workshop | |
| Critical Thinking | ||
| Info.Literacy & Problem Solving | Workshop | |
Inter-disciplinary Subjects & Standards
Multimedia, Computers, Technology, Critical Thinking
Projects & Activities
You will learn how to utilize Hyperstudio and/or Powerpoint in class to supplement your other projects. Using the topics assigned from the other classes, you will use either one of these software products to create visual images and sounds for any of the the projects mentioned above. You will also learn best ways to "surf the net" to find and capture these images and sounds in order to incorporate them into your final products.
Acceptable Use Policies will be handed out the first day and to be returned by the end of the first week of school. A discussion of those policies will take place at that time. They cover accessing acceptable sites, copyrights, and your rights and responsibilities with regards to proper "nettiquette".
How you will be evaluated
Your presentations will be graded on format, content, and timeliness. In the working world, a company and its employees are often assigned tasks that must meet deadlines. In keeping with this concept, strict deadlines will be assigned. Whatever is completed at that time will be graded.
Digging Deeper
Additional Internet Links for research:
Additional Links for Critical Thinking:
Software Used in Class:
