I'm currently the head of English and raising standards leader at a secondary school in Birmingham. I'm passionate about my subject and passionate about ensuring that the young people we serve leave education with a high competency in English.
Prior to teaching I worked in the radio industry as a presenter for 7 years and so when I became a teacher I enjoyed the opportunity to teach Media studies.
You'll find hundreds of English and Media studies resources.
I'm currently the head of English and raising standards leader at a secondary school in Birmingham. I'm passionate about my subject and passionate about ensuring that the young people we serve leave education with a high competency in English.
Prior to teaching I worked in the radio industry as a presenter for 7 years and so when I became a teacher I enjoyed the opportunity to teach Media studies.
You'll find hundreds of English and Media studies resources.
Resources to support the exploration of audio. (week1)
Resources provide opportunities to:
- explore audio types - silence, noise, speech, music etc.
- explore why audio is used - to create mood, to introduce an era, to reinforce an image etc.
- explore contrapuntal and pleonastic audio
Links to YouTube audio examples for each of the audio purposes are included.
The week's work of resources culminates in an assessment of understanding task.
Resources to support the exploration of audio production - week 3 - microphones.
Opportunities to:
- identify types of microphones - lavalier, direct connected, boundary, parabolic, noise cancelling etc.
- explore dynamic microphones and how they work
- the proximity effect
- investigate polar pattern of microphones
- investigate polar response
- use microphones to test out the proximity effect and directionality
Week's resources culminates with an assessment of understanding..
Resources to support the exploration of audio production. (Week 2)
Resources provide opportunities to explore:
- audio file formats - AIFF, mp3 etc.
- audio platforms - media player, iTunes etc
- mono and stereo
- acoustics in different locations such as full and empty rooms, theatres and open spaces
- recording audio in different environments
- direct sound and reverberation
- interior and exterior recording
Resources to support the creating of an audio product. (Week 4)
Opportunities to:
- explore the importance of audio editing - audacity software
- create an audio product- example given is a radio broadcast - the task requires students to bring together everything they've learned in weeks 1-3 including microphones, acoustics, purposes etc.
- conduct risk assessments before recoding on location as per industry
- evaluate own production work
A power point presentation covering major theorists in Media studies with opportunities for students to watch videos, conduct research and analyse media images as part of their revision.
Theorists and theories covered:
- audience positioning
- Representation and readings - Stuart Hall
- Roland Barthes - Action code & enigma code with video clip examples
- Claude Levi Strauss - Binary opposition - with video example
- Vladimir Propp - character theory with vide example
- Todorov - Narrative theory
- Syd Field - 3 act plot structure
Resources to support the teaching of TV Crime drama. Lessons are numbered for ease of use and provide opportunities to:
- explore the genre
- explore characters types
- explore representation of the police force
- analyse opening sequences
- create opening sequences
- explore scheduling strategies
- explore technological developments
- explore film noir
- explore Todorov's theory
- explore Propp's theory
- explore institutions
- explore mise en scene
- create pitches for own crime drama ideas - job roles included as per the industry to relate t the world of work
- explore codes
- explore narratives including multi strand
- explore crime drama audiences - geo-demographics, demographics - psychographics
- explore camera angles
- explore connotation and denotation
Resources to help get started with teaching video games and gamers. Lessons are numbered for ease of use.
Resources provide opportunities to:
- explore arcade gaming
- explore institutions
- explore platforms - consoles, tablets etc. and specifications
- explore game types - shoot-em-ups, first person shooter, strategy etc.
- explore video game audiences - demographic, geo-demographic, psychographic
- explore types of gamer - casual, mid-core, hard-core, social niche etc.
- explore audience profiles
- explore the 4Cs (media theory)
- explore the history of games consoles
Fully differentiated (by colour) resources to support the teaching of a one - two week Media based English project on advertising.
Differentiation:
yellow = higher
blue = middle
purple = lower
Resources provide opportunities to:
- explore target audience for advertising campaigns
- explore existing advertising campaigns
- explore the use of persuasive language
- explore the use of presentational features
- analyse the effectiveness of advertising campaigns
- explore the narratives of advertising campaigns
- design a new soft drink and develop the advertising production plan
- peer and self assess
- explore representation
- justify own design choices
These resources could also be useful as part of an enrichment day/activity.
Resources to support the analysis of and creating of magazine covers.
Resources provide opportunities to:
- explore connotations and denotations
- explore representation
- explore reader profiles
- explore audiences
- create a magazine cover
- evaluate own production work
- explore core buyers for a variety of titles
- explore colour connotation
- explore mise-en-scene
Resources to support the teaching of audio production. Lesson were planned to teach BTEC first unit 6 audio production but are equally suitable to help students understand audio for any Media studies course.
Students work towards a brief and will create audio (a radio programme) by following industry practice.
Resources provide opportunities to:
- explore a variety of audio - music, noise, silence, speech, special effects
- explore audio files - mp3, mp4, wav, AIFF, CD, DAB, FM
- explore mono and stereo
- monitor own audio consumption
- explore broadcast audio and non broadcast audio
- explore uses and gratifications - Blumler and Katz
- explore microphones
- edit audio using editing software
- follow a Media brief to create a radio programme (broadcast audio)
- explore and create radio sweepers, promos, idents, music beds etc.
- conduct research - primary and secondary
Differentiation using a points system. Students complete tasks to earn points, Difficult tasks have the most points attached to them.
A work book is included for students to use while studying.
Resources created for teaching unit 21 BTEC First diploma 'Creative Media production project.' These resources are useful for helping support students through any Media production project and cover the 3 stages of production. (pre-production, production and post-production)
Resources include:
- completing pre-production
- completing production
- completing post production
- generating of ideas for a production project on any topic
- analysing existing proposals - examples taken from new TV show proposals
- creating proposals inline with industry standard
- pass, merit, distinction success criteria
- giving a pitch
- exploration of legislation that affects work in Media including libel, defamation and slander - exploration of equality laws, privacy laws, copyright and the data protection act
A work book is also included for students to complete as they study
Resources to support the exploration of research techniques.
Over 70 power point slides and activities to support students through the process of conducting research. Resources will support students in doing the following:
- explore the effectiveness of and create questionnaires
- understand the difference between primary and secondary research
- use the NRS website (secondary research) to investigate print media audiences
- gather qualitative and quantitative data
- explore mass and niche audiences
- conduct audience research, market research and production research
- research attitudes and preferences in TV
- Use the BARB website (Secondary research) to investigate viewing figures
- Gather research to gain data ahead of creating a new media product
- present the results of research
Differentiation by points. Tasks have a varying number of points attached. The higher the number of points: the more complex the task.
Resources to support the teaching of Audio production originally planned for the BTEC course unit 4.
Lessons provide opportunities for students to explore and analyse:
- types of audio - music, speech, silence, noise etc.
- why audio is used - create mood, ambience, rhythm, reinforce images, introduce era etc. YouTube link examples to help students understand different purposes.
- the difference between pleonastic and contrapuntal audio
- Acoustics in different locations including theatres, empty & full rooms, open spaces etc.
- digital audio file formats - mps. dvd, AIFF etc.
- mono and stereo
- direct sound and reverberation
- interior and exterior recording
- record own audio using editing software
- a range of microphone types including: lavalier, boundary, direct connected, parabolic, noise cancelling etc.
- polar response in microphones
Over 10 fully differentiated (by colour) resources to support an introduction to Media studies for students beginning a course whether at GCSE, BTEC or A level.
The lessons are ready to go and are numbered for ease of use and expose students to a wide range of Media from the outset.
Differentiation:
purple = lower ability
blue = middle ability
yellow = higher ability
Resources provide opportunities to:
- explore connotation and denotation
- explore camera angles and make inferences
- analyse movie posters
- analyse magazine covers
- explore radio audiences
- explore mass and niche audiences
- explore demographics, geo-demographics and psychographics
- conduct primary and secondary research
- gather qualitative and quantitative data
- create questionnaires
- investigate media language and signs
- explore representation
- analyse own media consumption
- investigate audience profiles for television
- investigate newspaper audiences
Over 8 fully differentiated lessons (by colour) to support the teaching of TV News. These lessons are ready to go and are differentiated for ease of use.
These resources could be useful as an English or enrichment project. Students investigate TV news and then create their own TV news broadcast following the codes and conventions.
Differentiation:
purple = lower ability
blue = middle ability
yellow = higher ability
Resources provide opportunities to:
- research the variety of TV news programmes and channels & their target audiences
- investigate visual techniques
- investigate verbal techniques
- investigate selection, composition and combination (structuring news broadcasts)
- create own news broadcast
- script news broadcasts
Over 9 fully differentiated lessons (by colour) to support the analysis and creation of science fiction programmes and films. Lessons are ready to go and are numbered for ease of use.
Differentiation:
purple = lower ability
blue = middle ability
yellow = higher ability
Resources provide opportunities to:
- explore Todorov's theory
- explore Propp's theory
- explore Bordwell's theory
- explore the science fiction genre and sub genres
- Analyse science fiction films and programmes
- Create ideas for a new science fiction film
- explore the 'what if' theory
- explore science fiction audiences and pleasures
- compare science fiction films
- analyse media language
- explore uses and gratifications
- explore representation
Resources use the following science fiction as a stimulus:
- The Matrix
- The Hunger Games
- Jurassic World
- The Maze Runner
- Star Trek
Assessment materials also included
Resources to support the exploration and then creation of radio drama.
Resources provide opportunities to:
- work to a brief as per industry standard
- explore existing radio dramas
- listen to radio drama with focus on The Archers
- explore the history of radio dramas
- explore symbolic codes
- explore cultural codes
- explore technical codes
- explore conventions of radio drama
- explore style and structure of radio drama
- explore representation in radio drama
Resources to support the teaching of presentation techniques in Media studies. Resources were created to support the teaching of the BTEC national Media studies unit on presentation techniques. 4 assignments that encourage students to look back at the history of presenting styles and create their own style for a specified purpose.
Resources provide opportunities for students to:
- study skills needed to be a presenter
- explore the image of presenters
- explore a variety of radio presenting styles - personality presenter, format presenter, specialist presenter
- compare the skills needed of radio and TV presenters
- analyse the visual techniques of news presenters
- explore the history of presenting styles on the BBC
- explore the verbal techniques used by news presenters
- explore British Pathe
- receive an industry standard brief to create a 12 minute programme foe children on presentation techniques
- conduct primary and secondary research
- create a proposal for a new pilot as per industry standard
- study example proposals
- present in a specified role for a specified purpose
- reflect on own presentation work
