Lesson Plan

Printable Version (PDF)

Title

Vote:  Own It or Get Owned!

• Creating an Advertisement to encourage young people to vote.

Audience

Grade 5 - 11
(may require teacher adaptations to meet grade level prescribed learning outcomes)

Overview

In this lesson students will create a 30 second to 1 minute advertisement using technology to encourage voter participation.

Objectives

In this lesson, students will…

• understand voting is an essential component of participatory democracy
• identify that youth voter apathy is a challenge in Canada (use stats/data)
• implement a plan to increase voting [ with a specific target audience]
• demonstrate persuasive writing skills
• demonstrate persuasive speaking skills
• practice and demonstrate infusing technology skills
• demonstrate social responsibility

Activities and Method (pre-knowledge required)

• understanding elements and techniques of advertising (jingle, logo, motto, audience, etc)
• context of democracy; why voting is important > Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
• editing capabilities (MovieMaker, iMovie, etc.).

Lesson Activities

1. Show 3 - 4 Public Service Announcements (PSAs) that are issue-driven to analyze for effective advertising techniques. Students will use a teacher-created checklist (see Checklist) to analyze advertising techniques (including logo, motto, music, slogan) and approaches (shock, humour, emotional appeal). Students will also identify the issue and the target audience. (see samples of PSAs below, or select your own)

2. Discuss and debrief as a group the techniques and approaches used in the advertisement(s).
   
3. Inform the students: An advertising company has come to you with an identified issue. The issue is voter apathy. See statistics available at Elections BC: http://www.elections.bc.ca/index.php/resource-centre/statistics-and-surveys (click on voter participation by age group)
   
4. The task is to create a television advertisement to encourage democratic participation.

1. Submit a written proposal for your advertisement. This must include:

• rationale: why we have used this approach to conquer the issue of voter apathy
• our target audience is 18 – 24 (teacher could extend to include other targets
  i.e. blue-collar workers, elderly, transient populations, etc.)
• approach used: humour, shock, emotional, etc (see Checklist)
• techniques used: jingle, slogan, logo, narrator vs. live action (see Checklist)
• assignment of roles within group (groups – teacher discretion)
• script of your entire ad
• Plan is submitted to teacher for editing and approval.

2. Filming of advertisement
3. Editing of advertisement
4. Presentation of advertisement to classmates.
5. Optional: Peer Critique of projects/ movie review
6. Evaluation (individual, peer, group, teacher)

Extension Activities

If you so chose, you could have your students create a whole advertising campaign to combat voter apathy. Extension activities could include:

• event coordination,
• print advertisement (poster, magazine)
• visual swag (t-shirts, pins, buttons, etc.)

Please note: This project could always be presented as a live skit option for those who do not have access to video technology.

Preparation (by teacher and by student)

• checklist for analyzing ads (see attached)
• book technical equipment (cameras, lab, etc)

Duration of Activity

• This activity is at the teacher’s discretion.
• The advertising analysis and project description lesson should take 60 minutes.
• Script development – time depends on grade level and timetable constraints
• Filming - 30 minutes to 1 hour
• Editing – 1 to 2 hours

Learning Outcomes

• identify & clarify problem (voter apathy) or inquiry (all grades)
• explain how a Canadian can effect change at the federal or provincial level (Grade 11)
• implement a plan of action to address a selected local or global issue (Grade 5 A6,
  Grade 6 A5, Grade 7 A1)
• additional learning outcomes (English, technology, media awareness, social responsibility) are met by this lesson

Materials & Resources

• video or links to videos demonstrating advertising techniques (samples listed above)
• checklist of advertising techniques (see attached)
• cameras for filming
• lab for editing (MovieMaker, iMovie, etc)

Evaluation of Activity

Written Proposal

• rationale: why you think your strategy will work
• use of persuasive language in script
• understanding and use of advertising techniques demonstrated in script
• message of voter apathy is clear, evident, (repeated)

Visual Presentation

Teachers and students can create evaluation criteria, which may include:

• Content: message clear, appeal to target audience evident, appropriate use of strategies
• Presentation: well-rehearsed/ memorized, clear, easy to hear, easy to see, all group members involved

See social responsibility performance standards as well.

Class work participation mark
Peer critique of projects

Submitted By:

Ashley Bakker, RE Mountain Secondary, School District #35 (Langley)
Brenda Ball, Fleetwood Park Secondary School, School District #36 (Surrey)
Paul Boyd, Charles Bloom Secondary School, School District #22 (Vernon)
Nimfa Casson, Sunset Elementary, School District #85 (Vancouver Island North)
Sharon Hall, École Duncan, School District #79 (Cowichan Valley)

NOTE: The ideas and opinions expressed in this classroom activity belong to their authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. The Public Education and Outreach office only edits for clarity.

Appendix

Printable Version of Checklist (PDF)

Checklist for Analyzing Advertising