Lesson Plan: Media at Work
Time period: An introductory 60-minute lesson or group discussion followed by a period of production activity, which can be adapted to suit local requirements.
Age range: 12-14
About this lesson
The aim of these lessons is to show how PDSA and its advertising agency develop fundraising and awareness. We provide opportunities for students to participate in some simple media production using basic equipment, even their mobile phone video capabilities.
The first lesson introduces PDSA and the marketing team who are responsible for fundraising. It also explores how the advertising agency responds to PDSA briefs, and the creative processes involved in media production.
Extension lessons can provide students with the opportunity of making a radio or video 'commercial', or a simple poster, to support PDSA awareness amongst their peers.
Learning Intentions
PDSA is the UK's leading veterinary charity, caring for the pets of people in need. We provide free veterinary treatment to more than 4,650 sick and injured animals every working day and we promote responsible pet ownership.
Getting that message across to young people requires really good communication skills and this project encourages students to understand and analyse the creative and production skills required in today's media industry.
The project also encourages teamwork and media production work at a variety of learning levels.
Learning Outcomes
Students should understand the importance of PDSA's work and the need to provide financial support. Most of that support comes from people over the age of 40, so PDSA wishes to engage the support of younger people.
That requires increased awareness of PDSA and its work amongst younger people and the key outcome of this project is that your students gain that awareness.
At the same time they will be able to analyse and create media texts, learn about media production and work as a team to create a useful media piece.
Prior Learning
Although no prior learning is essential, it is helpful if students have some knowledge of media production and have developed their group communication skills.
Links to the National Curriculum England and Wales
Subject
English KS3
Syllabus Link
Speaking and listening, reading, writing
Language use and structure
Group discussion and interaction
Understanding the author's craft
Media and moving image texts
Subject
Citizenship KS3
Syllabus Link
Developing skills of participation and responsible action
Pupils should be taught to:
a) use their imagination to consider other people's experiences and be able to think about, express and explain views that are not their own;
b) negotiate, decide and take part responsibly in both school and community-based activities;
c) reflect on the process of participating.
Subject
Key Skills
Syllabus Link
Teamwork, communication, sharing responsibility
Links to the Scottish Guidelines
Subject
English Language Level S2
Syllabus Link
Listening, talking, reading and writing
Pupils should be taught:
a) to develop their skills and knowledge so that they can realise to the full, their ability to understand English and use it accurately;
b) how they can gain personal development through language and literature, including intellectual, emotional, aesthetic, social and moral development;
c) to develop a range of positive attitudes towards their own and each other's language development, including concern for tolerance, enjoyment, co-operation and sharing.
Subject
Personal and Social Development Level S2
Syllabus Link
The development of life skills.
Pupils should be taught to:
a) have an appropriately positive regard for self, and for others and their needs;
b) develop life skills to enable them to participate effectively and safely in society;
c) identify, review and evaluate the values they and society hold and recognise that these affect thoughts and actions;
d) take increasing responsibility for their own lives.
Subject
Key skills
Syllabus Link
Look after their personal needs; work independently; participate effectively in groups; make their own decisions; assess their own abilities and capabilities
Keywords
Rights, responsibilities, rules, democracy, decision making, discussions, debates, community, citizen, justice, fairness, laws
Resources
- Computer and data projector
- Production flowchart (print this out from here (link to production flowchart))
- Space for group discussion
- Media production facilities - for audio, video or poster production
Lesson Structure: Lesson 1
Introduction and Warm-up (Timing: 10 mins)
Show the PDSA Introductory PowerPoint. It will describe in simple terms what PDSA does, the importance of pet care advocated by the 2007 Animal Welfare Act, and the lesson to follow.
Ask students how much they remember about charity fundraising advertising. Which adverts do they remember most? Do they remember hearing or seeing a PDSA advertisement or TV commercial?
You could show the PetCast 61 (PDSA advertisement)
Introduce the objective of this block of lessons - to engage with professional production and apply professional production skills to produce a student awareness advertisement.
Main items (Timing: 40 mins)
Connect to the Internet and the School PDSA Media at Work Area.
Start by selecting 'Setting the Media at Work Challenge' area and follow the screens explaining how a PDSA TV commercial is made.
It is useful if students have printed out the Production Flowchart and follow this during your presentation.
The presentation offers you the opportunity of discussing the media pieces offered and the techniques described by the advertising team's creative personnel.
Plenary (Timing : 10 mins)
Confirm learning and invite students to revisit the website to review understanding. This can be done during homework time to prepare them for the next (extension) lesson where they will work in teams to develop their own media piece.
Extension Lesson Structure: Lesson 2
Introduction and Warm-up (Timing: 10 mins)
Over the next few weeks students are going to make their own media piece as a contribution to the school's community activities.
Ask them to form into small groups and prepare for the project by knowing what production equipment they will use, and checking they know how to use it in a responsible way.
Spend a few minutes revising students' understanding of media production.
Project Production lessons (Timing: Various)
Connect to the Internet and the Schools PDSA Media at Work site. Use this for reference or discussion as you see fit.
1. Ask students to discuss and prepare their ideas. They can print out templates to help them produce their Creative Brief, Script and Storyboard prior to production.
We suggest the entire group spends time reviewing and critiquing their own and the other groups' work at an early stage.
Once student ideas have been well formulated and planned, they can have as much time as you feel is necessary to produce their piece. This may be over several lessons, or during private time.
2. For students not equipped to produce their own media piece from scratch, we have provided three simpler activities:
i) Make a radio commercial
ii) Create the sound track to an existing TV commercial
iii) Design a poster
Both activities require only limited knowledge of production work and could be combined with Design and Technology lessons
Plenary (Timing : 60 mins)
Once students have completed a media piece - or simply planned their ideas on paper - invite them to critique each group's entry before encouraging them to submit a finished piece to PDSA as the school's entry.
If you don't wish to follow up the Media at Work Challenge it would be useful if students are encouraged to play their media pieces to other students of the same age and see how they change attitude towards PDSA and the importance of its work.
Competency Standards
As a result of these sessions children should be able to demonstrate a better understanding of PDSA and its important work. They should have also developed their media understanding and have contributed to group discussion and production activity.
