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| Overview |
 In this lesson, students take on the role of the director of a
movie. After exploring cinematic terms, students read a literary
work with director's eyes, considering such issues as which scenes
require a close-up of the main character and when the camera should zoom out
to see the entire set. While reading the text, students would record their
scenes on
a bookmark. All of these activities would be completed in anticipation of viewing
the movie version of a favorite book.
This lesson uses Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl as
an example; however, the activities can be completed with any matched movie
and piece of literature (e.g., any of the Harry Potter books, A Series
of Unfortunate Events, or The Polar Express).
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| From Theory to Practice |
We know that students are interested in movies and films, but do they have educational
value in the language arts classroom? Absolutely! But how can teachers
make this experience meet the needs of our curriculum and still have the activity
be meaningful for students? There is a natural relationship between
literature and films that lends itself to effective classroom activities. As
John Golden explains, literature and films “should be used closely
together because they share so many common elements and strategies to gain and
keep the audience's attention” (36). The shared elements of literature
and film create opportunities for students to explore both literary and cinematic
elements through their many connections. What students already know about literature
informs what they learn about film, and what they already know about film informs
what they learn about literature. When students are familiar with
the related piece of literature, for instance, they can focus
on the cinematic terms and spend less time on the comprehension of the literary
text.
Further Reading
Golden, John. 2001. Reading in the Dark: Using Film as a Tool in the English Classroom. Urbana, IL: NCTE, 2001.
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| Student Objectives |
Students will
- examine and apply cinematic terms.
- improve comprehension by interpreting, analyzing, synthesizing and evaluating
written text.
- categorize text in terms of film terminology as a means of predicting while
reading.
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| Instructional Plan |
Resources
Preparation
Instruction and Activities
Session One
- Ask students to discuss a movie version of a favorite book that will be
coming soon to a local theater, using the following questions to guide the
discussion:
- What do you most look forward to?
- What scene do you think must be included in the movie?
- What are you afraid the director may leave out?
- What scenes do you think can be left out without affecting the plot?
- Do you think the movie will stay true to the text?
- In pairs, ask students to share with each other their experiences of viewing
films made from literary texts, using the following questions to shape the
conversation:
- How closely did the movie follow the text?
- Was watching the movie version a positive or negative experience?
- After the paired discussion, invite volunteers to share some thoughts with the class.
- Direct students the online
glossary of cinematic terms, or pass out copies of the film terms
handout.
- In pairs or small groups, provide some time for students to read and discuss the glossary.
- Gather the class, and ask students to share some of the terms that were
interesting to them as well as any general feedback. Answer any questions the
students have about any of the terms.
- Again in pair or small groups, invite students to share examples from movies
they have seen where some of these methods have been utilized. Share an example
from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory:
there should be a low angle shot the first time we meet Willy Wonka.
- Ask students if they know of any books or other texts that are currently
being made into a movie. If desired, use the Web site Based
on the Book, which lists
movies made from a literary text as well as the year they were released, to
supplement the conversation.
- Record the brainstormed list of movies on the board or chart paper.
- Explain the project to students:
- From a list of
books made in to movies, you will choose a text to read, as a
way of predicting and thinking about the text to the movie.
- Referring to the film terms from the handout or online
glossary,
read the text with the eye of a movie director.
- Record your thoughts on the bookmark, predicting the decisions
that you think the director will make.
- Share the directions for the project with the students:
- On the front of the bookmark, write the title, author, and your name.
Use the remaining room on the front of the bookmark to recreate the book
jacket or draw a scene from their favorite passage.
- On the back of the bookmark, use the available space to predict the decisions
you think the director will make, critical scenes you think should be
included, and related film terms. Mark the page number of the example and
the additional details on the bookmark as you read the text.
- During the activity and once students have finished reading the texts,
you’ll share your bookmarks in pairs or small groups. Keep an eye
out for similarities and new ideas.
- When the movie is released at the theater or on DVD, we’ll view
the movie and compare our bookmarks and cinematic ideas to what actually
occurs on the big screen.
- Share the self-assessment for
the bookmark, the bookmark template, and the example Charlie and the Chocolate Factory bookmark.
- Since the project may inspire students, offer several different publishing options:
- Answer any questions that students have about the project. Since they will be working independently, make sure that they understand the activity before concluding the session.
- Once you’re satisfied that students understand the assignment, they can begin
reading the literary work, filling out the bookmark as they read.
- If students are all reading the same book, encourage students to interact
with one another, to share and receive feedback.
Session Two
- Continue reading until all texts have been completed, or set a deadline for the reading to be completed.
- Prompt students as they read to fill out their bookmarks with predictions
of the director’s decisions, using the film terms the handout or online
glossary and examples
from the book.
- Remind students to refer to the self-assessment sheet to make sure
that they include all the required elements.
Session Three
- When students’ reading is completed and the bookmarks are filled
in, gather students to discuss the books that they have read.
- Ask students to share brief summaries of their books (without revealing the
ending, of course).
- Ask students to share their bookmarks, which include
page numbers of passages from the books that illustrate different film terms.
- When the movies from the project are available, view them as a class.
- Invite the students who read the books to act as moderators.
- Open the floor for discussion, asking students to share their bookmarks and
any similarities they found between their predictions and the film.
Extensions
- After viewing the film version of a literary text, invite students to write
a movie review. Look at examples of other movie reviews for inspiration and
examples of the details that should be included.
- While there are many great texts that have been made into films, there are
a number that have not. Invite students to write a play or skit turning their
favorite text into a performance.
- Invite students to create DVD covers that illustrate their depiction of a scene using the CD/DVD Cover Creator.
Web Resources
- IMDb Film Glossary
http://www.imdb.com/Glossary/
- This site provides an extensive list of cinematic terms and their definitions,
provided by the Internet Movie Database.
- Movie Review Query Engine
http://www.mrqe.com/lookup
- This searchable movie review database includes over 45,000 movie titles
that can be used as a supplement for class discussion.
- Book and Movie List
http://www.readwritethink.org/lesson_images/lesson46/
SixthThroughEighthBookandMovieList.pdf
- A list of 6-8 titles that have been made into movies.
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| Student Assessment/Reflections |
Informal feedback from students who read the bookmarks and search out the related
book are excellent feedback for students. For more formal assessment, meet
with the students and discuss their self-assessment sheet, which is
tied to the key elements that should be included on the bookmark.
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1 - Students read a wide range of print and nonprint texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary works.
3 - Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
4 - Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes.
5 - Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
6 - Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and nonprint texts.
8 - Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge.
11 - Students participate as knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical members of a variety of literacy communities.
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