This unit promises to be very stimulating and motivational, as it incorporates a tool that is a fairly new and highly accepted adolescent phenomenon—video. This unit will explore the fascinating world of M.T.V. It uses many media forms: pop song lyrics, magazine advertisements and video to carry out its theme of communication. The activities are devised in such a way that they carry the class through a step by step exploration of the video process. Dance is introduced by viewing a special 60 minute video entitled “The Making of Thriller” by Michael Jackson. At this point our dance focus really develops as we add the critiquing process. Our final step will be the actual making of a video.
Although this was written as a dance curriculum unit, academics relate very strongly to many aspects of it. The lyric analysis study can relate extremely well to an English class. Carefully chosen lyrics could follow a Social Studies curriculum or enhance a Current Events class. There are numerous lyric magazines reality available, bursting with excellent expressions of the computer age, robotics, radio and video that could be used in a science class. My segment on graphic visual communications could lead into an economic study and even tie in with a visual arts class if desired.
The final, making of a video, project could express anything you wish and definitely relate to any curriculum. This final product would simply be a statement of the information learned during the unit’s presentation. I plan to use this last project as our final communication project, and as a wrap-up, I plan to have the class present their video to other students of Conte in a formal assembly. This will be their final verbal and visual communication assignment.
(Recommended 9th through 12th English, Current Events, Science, and Visual Arts classes)
Key Words
Dance Adolescence American Television Use Contemporary MTV Music
