• Teaching objectives

To enable SS learn how to interpret the multiple layers of image-based

communication
To enable SS understand where information comes from, whose interests may be
being served and how to find alternative views.
To allow SS to become media literate.
To foster critical thinking and creative communication

• Content (contextual and textual dimension)

See excel file

• Teaching sequences
See below
• Teaching aids/materials (try including authentic materials from different
modes: video, text, Internet, etc)
Information taken from internet sources, commercials downloaded from internet,
Guide to media literacy downloaded from internet
• Evaluation (plan when to assess language and how- include both
formative and summative assessment)
See below

TEACHING SEQUENCE

Introducing advertising
T will ask SS for their favourite brand of food, clothes, and technological gadgets. Then
she will ask SS to support their answers. What is the reason of their choice? Eventually
she will elicit the word advertising

Read about advertising. Match headings and paragraphs

A. A lot of money is spent on advertising
B. Target audience
C. Defining advertising

1 Advertising is anything a company does to draw attention on a product or

service. It is an important part of running any business, large or small. No
business can be successful without successful advertising. It gains both new
customers for a business, as well as affirms to current customers that the
business is still offering quality services and products.

2. Advertising allows businesses to reach a broad audience and to let the public
know about the products and services the business offers.The goal of well-
placed advertising is to get the ad to the target market. Advertising is an art
form, one which leaves the memory of a business’s products or services in the
consumers mind.

Businesses worldwide spend over $400 billion on advertising expenses,

 3. Many of the outlets for media, including radio and television, are almost entirely
supported through advertising income. Without it, we would not have these
mediums

Answer: what is the purpose of advertising?

Different kind of advertising (briefly introduced)

Match headings and paragraphs
A. Television and Radio Advertising
B. Online Advertising
C. Print Advertising

They are effective, and cheap and the oldest kind of adverting. They can be included in
magazines and newspapers

Electronic email, electronic newsletters, and Internet radio are all forms of positive
advertising.

Banner advertisements are one of the most common forms of this kind of advertising.
These are the graphic ads you will see on most websites. They can be situated at the top
of the site, along the sides, or even in the middle of the site’s content. Banners often
include animation or interactive features.

They are perhaps the most common forms of advertising. They also can be the most
expensive options. They reach new consumers via audio and visual means.
Pop-ups appear in a small window when you first open a web page.

As homework, T will ask SS to choose an ad they like. It can be any kind of ad

from the ones discussed above.
After watching the ad they should write down the following:
Product advertised…………
Reasons why I like it………………

Analysis of the ad: TV ads will be the focus of analysis

T will elicit from SS the techniques that were used to catch their attention in the
commercials they’ve chosen.
Humor
Touching story
Good looking people appearing on it
Use of the visual/ sounds
Others

T will provide SS with the characteristics of successful commercials.

Humor: Advertising agencies often use humor as a tool in their creative marketing
campaigns. Humor is a tool of persuasion according to psychological studies.
Compelling story: Tell a compelling story by creating visual imagery appealing to the
heart, plays with your heartstrings, by using animals, babies or nature. (Budweiser has
a great record with its magnificent horses)
An authoritative approach will cause the audience to believe the person making the
pitch and do what he or she says. "I'm a doctor and I advice you to buy this". a real
expert or trusted personality makes a product believable and successful.

The endorsement or testimonial is similar to the authoritative approach. An

endorsement ad is a regular person telling you why they believe in the product - i.e.
people, etc. This type of ad can be very successful if the personality is believable..

SS will think of examples of each kind of ad they’ve seen on TV

SS will watch a Greenpeace ad.

Before watching it, T will elicit from SS that the function of Greenpeace is to protect
the environment.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgvnqv1-_D4

Analysis of the ad
Visuals.
After the first viewing, SS will write down everything they can remember about the
visuals: lighting,, camera angles.
Description of the boy-- what does he look like? what is he doing? wearing? Why ?
What scenes or images do you remember clearly?

Sounds.
Is music used? Why not? Who is talking? Why?.

Listening
T will ask SS what they think the video is about considering the phrase appearing at the
end: Join the energy revolution. Greenpeace
T will make SS mention environmental problems they know about to elicit global
warming among others. T will play the first part of the video and ask SS which of the
problems they have mentioned appear on the video.

SS will listen to the sound track and fill in the gaps with the following phrases
Oceans will rise. Life will change in ways you can’t even imagine.
You are a friend, or you are an enemy
By the time I grow up there won’t be any fish left in the sea.
It is not my problem
The earth is getting warmer

The scientific community released a report that proves beyond a doubt

______________________. This global warming is caused by things you grown ups do,
and by the things you don’t.

If drastic measures aren’t taken soon, __________________________________

_____________. Rainforests and clean air will be a thing of the past. Polarized caps
will be gone, oceans will rise. Life will change in ways you can’t even imagine. There
could be famine, worldwide epidemics, life expectancy will be lower.

But we are not just talking about the future, _______________________! But this is no
surprise, you adults have known about this, and though you could have done something
for it, you haven’t. You can say “______________, you can say “I won’t be around in
fifty years”, but you can’t say “I didn’t know”.

Starting today the lines are drawn. You have to choose sides. Either you are for my
future, or you are against it. _________________________I may just be a kid today,
but tomorrow it will be different. This is the last time I will be talking to you adults.
You’ve had your chances to fix this problem. Now we have ours. We won’t be cute, we
wont be patronized, we won’t be denied our future.

Match each paragraph with these headings

Adults are responsible for global warming
Adults know about the situation
Urgent actions are needed
Adults have to make a decision

Answer:
What are the problems mentioned?
What are adults’ excuses according to the boy?
Who is the audience addressed by the commercial?/ who does the commercial speak to?

Five Key Questions of Media Literacy

SS will watch the commercial again. Then they will answer the following questions.

1. Who created this message?

Guiding Questions:
• What kind of “text” is it?
• What are the various elements (building blocks) that make up the
whole?
• How similar or different is it to others of the same genre?
• Which technologies are used in its creation?
• How would it be different in a different medium?
• What choices were made that might have been made differently?
• How many people did it take to create this message? What are their
various jobs?

2. What techniques are used to attract my attention?

Guiding Questions:
• What do you notice. . . (about the way the message is constructed?)
o Colors and shapes?
o Sound effects? Music? Silence? Dialogue or Narration?
o Props, sets, clothing?
o Movement? Composition
o Lighting?
• Where is the camera? What is the viewpoint?
• How is the story told? What are people doing?
• Are there any visual symbols or metaphors?
• What’s the emotional appeal? Persuasive devices?
• What makes it seem “real”?

SS will the classification made above.

3. How might different people understand this message
differently from me?.
Guiding Questions:
• Have you ever experienced anything like this?
• How close does it come to what you experienced in real life?
• What did you learn from this media text? What did you learn about yourself from experiencing the
media text?
• What did you learn from other people’s response—and their experience?
• How many other interpretations could there be? How could we hear about them?
• How can you explain the different responses?
• Are other viewpoints just as valid as mine?

4. What lifestyles, values and points of view are represented

in, or omitted from, this message?
Guiding Questions:
• How is the human person characterized? What kinds of behaviors /
consequences are depicted?
• What type of person is the reader / watcher / listener invited to
identify with?
• What questions come to mind as you watch / read / listen?
• What ideas or values are being “sold” in this message?
• What political or economic ideas are communicated in the message?
• What judgments or statements are made about how we treat other
people?
• What is the overall worldview?
• Are any ideas or perspectives left out? How would you find what’s
missing?

5. Why was this message sent?

Guiding Questions:
• Who’s in control of the creation and transmission of this message?
• Why are they sending it? How do you know?
• Who are they sending it to? How do you know?
• Who is served by, profits or benefits from the message? The public?
Private interests? Individuals? Institutions?
• Who wins? Who loses? Who decides?
• What economic decisions may have influenced the construction or
transmission of the message?

SS will analyze the language of advertising present in it. T will explain to SS that
advertising language uses common words, often with some emotional value. T will
provide SS with words that are commonly used in advertising.

Language of advertising
http://www.stanford.edu/class/linguist34/Unit_07/offlinetext.htm

The twenty most frequent adjectives:

1. new
2. good/better/best
3. free
4. fresh
5. delicious
6. full
6. sure
8. clean
8. wonderful
10. special
11. crisp
12. fine
13. big
14. great
15. real
16. easy
16. bright
18. extra
18. safe
20. rich

The twenty most frequent verbs:

1. make
2. get
3. give
4. have
5. see
6. buy
7. come
8. go
9. know
10. keep
10. look
12. need
13. love
14. use
15. feel
15. like
17. choose
18. take
19. start
19. taste

SS will check if any of these words appear in the Greenpeace ad.

SS will analyse the following commercials.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcQIwbvGRKU talk talk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2Jfma9F7Mg&NR=1 hyundai
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6Cuq-BueEs mobile

The first time they watch, they will concentrate on only one aspect: the visual or
the sound; thus either the volume will be turned off, or they will watch only the
image to predict what the commercial is about, and analyze the effectiveness of the
techniques used.

They second time they will watch the commercial using the questions mentioned
above, and finally checking the list of words used in advertising
In groups SS will analyze a commercial of their own choice following the
same steps. They will present it to the class.

In groups SS will create a commercial of their own (using the technology they are
familiar with to make it)

ASSESSMENT
Formative assessment
T and SS will evaluate SS productions along the project
 Checklist

Self assessment Student Teacher Comments

0123 0123
1. I have cooperated in group work
I can create an ad in English using simple
words, visual imagery and sounds
3 I can use internet sources to find
information and can edit information
using the word processor

5 I can watch a video in English and get the gist of

it
7. I can solve language problems by consulting a
dictionary

9- I can understand the teacher’s feedback and

improve.

Peer and T feedback on video presentation. Ss and T will evaluate the ad each group
has made.

Aspects to consider:
Ss will be given a scale( from 1 to 5) for items 1 2 3 4 5

1. Content: does it catch the audience attention?

2. Language: does it use language of persuasion?
3. Presentation: are the techniques used effective?
4. Group work:
5. Do you enjoy it?
6. comments

Evaluating the outcome of the project. The same check list could be used by students
to assess their work

SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT:

SS will watch a Coke ad in the video room and take down notes of what they
consider important
In the classroom SS will make a test

Coca cola ad “what goes around comes around”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKGw_KYH63k

Jingle
Match the split lines
One thing is as good as it gets
Is that love if you give it
And you’ll get more you learn you can bet

Order the lines

It’s inside of you, so just show it.
Love is the truth, it’s the right thing to do CHORUS
It’s the right thing to do, and you know it.

Fill in the gaps

In the arms of a mother and _________
In the eyes of a son and a ___________
It’s everywhere, you just have to care

CHORUS

Answer
What are the common words that appear in the ad?
Find words that appeal to the senses?
Is the jingle effective? Why?
How can you relate the jingle with the images?
What is the message of the ad?
Why does the ad end with the following phrase The coke side of life?
How can you relate the ad to the product advertised?
Which of the characteristics of the successful commercial did you see in the ad?

Answer the 5 questions of media literacy

Who created the message?
What techniques are used to attract my attention?
How might different people understand this message differently from me?
What lifestyles, values and points of view are represented in, or omitted from, this
message?
Why was this message sent?