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Discover Denali Lesson Plans
Lesson #2 - My Denali Movie
 Alaska Standards
English/Language Arts
A student should be able to speak and write well for a variety of purposes and audiences.
A student who meets the content standard should:
1. apply elements of effective writing and speaking; these elements include ideas, organization, vocabulary, sentence structure, and personal style;
Arts
A student should be able to create and perform in the arts.
A student who meets the content standard should: |
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participate in dance, drama, music, visual arts, and create writing; |
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refine artistic skills and develop self-discipline through rehearsal, practice, and revision; |
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appropriately use new and traditional materials, tools, techniques, and processes in the arts; |
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demonstrate the creativity and imagination necessary for innovative thinking and problem solving; |
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5. |
collaborate with others to create and perform works of art; |
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integrate two or more art forms to create a work of art; |
Lesson Introduction -
 Students are now ready to create their own story of Denali Park. The storyboard exercises in Lesson #1 are a way to help student deductively think about what they know and don't know about the Park. Now that they are more aware of their knowledge and the gaps in their understanding, they can begin doing the work of listening, learning, researching, and describing the Park in their own words…in their own story.
Students will be using the storyboards from Lesson #1 to plan, shoot, edit, and publish their own movies about Denali. Through this process they will demonstrate an understanding of the research in Denali National Park through inquiry-based science and personal reflection in the creation of a digital story. |
Tasks:
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review storyboard created in Lesson #1 |
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revise or amend to reflect current understanding of research issues, as well as final edits to the “story” being presented, |
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each individual or group share their story projects on Denali Park with other groups |
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discuss and identify main theme or issues surrounding Denali Park (i.e. exotic species, wildlife habitat protection, tourism, etc) |
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finalize story ideas and storyboards with teams, |
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get teacher approval to begin using video equipment to begin filming |
Collaborate
The importance to teamwork in working on the filming cannot be overstated. Students should organize into roles to help make the process efficient and effective at gathering the needed moving images. Students may want to identify team members for the following roles: |
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camera person |
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director |
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sound person |
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actors/actresses |
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editor |
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time manager |
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equipment manager |
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other tasks related to being safe, warm, or bug-free during the work |
 Once roles have been identified and assigned, then the team is ready to begin the task of gathering equipment and getting to the locations for the filming. There should be an agreed upon process for conflict resolution in order to allow the team to get the work done in the field and in the editing process without major disruptions.
Another way to approach this task is as an individual. This precludes the needs for most of the collaboration described above, but does not eliminate the need for coordination with the Park for information on safety issues, bus schedules, or other logistics. Most of this information can be obtained in advance or at the Denali Park Visitor's Center. Safety remains the highest priority for humans and animals in the Park's responsibilities, so its worth emphasizing that with students at all times.
Create
Students will need to take their video equipment (camera, tri-pods, sound gear, etc) into the field to capture the images for their movie. They will be shooting according to their storyboard and storyline, so be sure to emphasize the importance of sticking to their plan. It is, however, very likely they will want or need to improvise the video work based on new information or ideas in the field. Young filmmakers are especially used to forgetting their storyboards and filming everything. Help them stay as focused and on schedule as possible.
Be open to spontaneous opportunities that may come along, such as a wildlife viewing or unusual event. If the students are exercising creative license in making their film, it's wise to keep their eyes and minds open to the natural and wild things in the Park. This balance between the planned and spontaneous should provide plenty of raw footage for the editing sessions coming up next. Other things to keep in mind while filming: |
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be sure to bring extra film |
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use a tri-pod for all shots to ensure quality |
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pay attention and use light to best effect |
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always shoot more footage than you expect to need (i.e. an extra 5-10 seconds on either end of a shoot) |
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whenever possible, use microphones for capturing people's voices |
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frame subjects in shots to avoid being too close or too far away |
Other ideas for proper shooting can be found in the book, Digital Storytelling with iMovie book listed at the Resources Button.
The editing process typically takes place back at the classroom, bus, or Science and Learning Center. Here the team simply takes the footage from the camera and “imports’ it into the computer for editing. Once the footage is properly imported, the editor and director make decisions based upon the storyboard, script, research process, or other pre-planned ideas. There will always be some creative aspects of editing to allow the movie to tell the story as originally planned. Editing can be time consuming and relationship intensive, since a lot of tough decisions have to be made in a collaborative process. Budget plenty of time and give teams space to work. Be ready to keep them on their time schedules to allow publication of final movies.
Communicate -
Once the movies are edited, then it show-time. Students will likely be excited and a bit frightened about sharing their work with audiences. Create a process that helps everyone feel safe and invited to share. If there will be any form of critique, be sure to spell out well in advance what the criteria is for measuring the work. It may even help to practice critiquing a neutral film not created by the students. Make students feel their films will receive a safe landing no matter how good or bad the first efforts turn out to be.
 A nice way to communicate films is through a screening of all the films created by students. This might take place in a gym or classroom at school. Allow any students not comfortable with the public screening to opt for a review by fewer people. Give everyone's movie a chance to be seen and discuss in small or large groups the impact, technical merits, and “story.” While the assessment process will measure the movie, there is no way to measure the boost or deflation of confidence if the sharing of movies is not done with care.
Assessment
The assessment for the Denali Movie can vary depending on the goals for the project within the classroom or for sharing with larger audiences. For instance in the classroom, students may focus on the process of gathering information or formulating reflections about wilderness issues. For larger audiences the focus may be on the “story” of research in a way that anyone can understand and act on certain issues around the Park. The final rubric will be up to the students and teachers depending on your curricular goals for this digital storytelling project.
Below is a rubric for assessing some of the basic elements of a representative movie around the Discovery Denali Activity Guide. As with all lesson, the rubric measures student work in the categories of communication, collaboration, and creativity. You may also want to measure certain technical or storytelling elements in the digital story. For more rubrics that can help with these assessments, check out the assessment section at www.teachingstory.com. |
| Learning Outcome |
Advanced
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Proficient
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Developing
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| Communication |
• The message was crystal clear to the audience.
• Presentation included visual, oral, graphics.
• All components of storytelling elements were evident in the skit. |
• The video is easy to understand, with a main point introduced early, and supported throughout.
The video uses a dramatic question. |
• The message was unclear to the audience.
• Presentation included a visual, oral, or graphic. |
| Collaborate |
• All members of the team participated in planning and conducting the video.
• The team used a clear process to plan, conduct, and evaluate the video. |
• A majority of the team members collaborated in planning and conducting the video.
• The team used “group roles” to ensure everyone was clear of what to do. |
• Some members of the team participated in the video.
• A few members of the team planned the video. |
| Creativity |
• The team used a variety of props in the video.
• The message was presented with original ideas in an artistic context.
• The team had fun. |
• The team used some props in the video.
• The video included a variety of voice and connotation.
• The team had fun. |
• The team used one prop.
• The video was presented from one view point.
• The audience was somewhat engaged.
• The team had fun. |
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Resources
(see Resources Button)
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Home Page
Discover Denali Lesson Plans:
• Lesson #1 -
Storyboarding
• Lesson #2 -
My Denali Movie
• Lesson #3 -
Handhelds
• Lesson #4 -
Maps & Storytelling
• Lesson #5 -
Wireless Worlds
Resources
Denali Science & Storytelling Camp |
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