Activity 6 Creating - News report

Level: 9th-grade L2 learners - Higher level.

Time: 4 sessions (60 minutes each)

Norwegian curriculum:

• Bruke egne notater og forskjellige kilder som grunnlag for skriving.
• Brukde digitale verktøy og formkrav for informasjonsbehandling, tekstproduksjon og kommunikasjon.
• Velge digitale ressurser og andre hjelpemidler, og bruke dem på en selvstendig måte i egen språklæring. 

Goals:

• You should be able to use your own notes and other resources in order to make a news report. 
• You should be able to know who Rosa Park and Martin Luther King Jr. are. 
• You should be able to use the phone/camera and the computer to make a video.

Technologies:

• Computer - They will have access to a computer in every session, that way they can gather information and use the computer to write the manuscript. 
• Phone/Camera - The Phone/camera will be used to film the news report when they are finished with the prep work. 
• Youtube - Youtube will help the student to get inspiration. They can watch a news report from different tv stations and find inspiration that they can use in their own news report. The teacher will also start this assignment with youtube. The teacher will use it to show the students some examples so that they know what to do and get inspiration. 
• Google - Google is a great way to get information about the subject they have chosen for the news report. Here they can choose which websites they want to use for their assignment. They have to use their knowledge about how to find the right information and what they can use. 
• Movie Maker - Moviemaker is easy to use, and it can be used on Windows and Mac computers.

Into: 60 minutes

The teacher will introduce the assignment. They are going to create a news report about one of these subjects:

• Rosa Parks gets arrested after refusing to give up her seat on the bus. 
• Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gives the "I have a dream" speech.

First 30 minutes: The first thing the teacher should do is to give information about these two incidents. Tell them what happened, when it happened and inform them about The Civil Rights Movement. The teacher also needs to show different news reports from different tv stations. Both from Norway and countries where they speak English. That way they will see how a news report works and how it is done in different stations and countries before they make one themselves. The news report should be 5-7 minutes long. 

Last 30 minutes: Then they will be divided into groups of four, the groups are decided by the teacher. They should use the rest of the first session to discuss and come to an agreement on which incident they would like to dramatize. If they have time left, they should figure who is going to play the different characters and start to gather information about the incident. 

Through: 90 minutes

Then they will create the manuscript. Since they already have decided what incident they would like to dramatize, they should now find additional information about the incident online. That way they will have enough information to make a news report about it. They will need a computer, youtube and google. They have to work together to get information and write the manuscript. They should use the information they already have and the information they find on the internet to write the manuscript.
When the manuscript is done, they should start to rehearse. They should spend some time on this, that way when they start to film, they will not need as much time.

Beyond: 90 minutes

When the manuscript is done and they have rehearsed, they should start filming. Some might need costumes and props, they should bring this from home.
When they are done filming, they have to put it all together. They have to work together to get the news report right. The editing process could take some time. So the students should manage their time well. How they manage their time is up to each group. The teacher will be walking around helping the students. They might need more help when they start the editing process. 

Goals:

• You should be able to use your own notes and other resources in order to make a news report. - The teacher will be helping throughout this assignment. The video will also be delivered to the teacher so the teacher can see how much information they have been able to get into the news report. 
• You should be able to know who Rosa Park and Martin Luther King Jr. are. - Here they will know more about the incident they have chosen. Still, since the teacher will go through both incidents/persons in the first session, they will know the most important information about the two. 
• You should be able to use the phone/camera and the computer to make a video. - When the teacher sees the finished product, he/she will be able to measure this goal. 

Reflections:

This is a big assignment, where the students have to work together in groups to make a video. It is important to have both weak and strong students in each group. That way you make sure that they will help each other and work together to get it done. For some students, this could feel like a big project. That is why it is important to have a lot of time for them to work, but not too much. You also have to give some information about the topic and introduce them to The Civil Rights Movement. Ideally, they would have had a session before this assignment where they cover the Civil Rights Movement and more time on the editing process. This assignment could have more time, but not more than one session more. It could also be simplified. Where they do not make a video but present it live to the rest of the class. By making a video it will feel safer for some of the students. Not everyone likes to present for the rest of the class. Still, being in character and not themselves makes it easier for most of the students.

Literature:

Utdanningsforbundet, (2019), Læreplan i Engelsk (ENG1-03), Retrived from: https://www.udir.no/kl06/ENG1-03/Hele/Kompetansemaal/kompetansemal-etter-10.-arstrinn