The Media Spot

8th grade students choose a side on the future of Puerto Rico. Should it become independent, remain a commonwealth of the U.S., or become a U.S. State? Each group conducted research, designed a logo, and searched the Internet for images to help make their case. One group even wrote a rap! They wrote scripts, storyboarded, operated the camera and sound equipment, and edited the video (see TMS Live! for documentary footage). The projects were screened around the school, and audiences were polled aferwards on where they stood on the Puerto Rican question. Who do you think won?

This promotional video shows The Media Spot in action in 2001 at Community School 211 in the Bronx, NY.

"At Community School 211 (Bronx, NY) and around the country March is Women's History Month." 8th graders give on-location coverage of this event, following the TV news industry's standard 'video news release' (VNR) format.

For their Puerto Rican Pride assembly, 8th graders edited images of themselves into photos featuring Puerto Rican cultural and historical scenes and figures. These photos accompanied video interviews in which the students told original stories linking them to the action in the photos.

8th graders mapped out and shot a documentary tour of their neighborhood in the South Bronx.

Students from The Atlanta School (GA) collaborated with 8th graders from Community School 211 (Bronx, NY) to script and produce 3 videos using 3 different styles of filmmaking in one day at The Bronx Zoo.

8th graders adapted a scene from S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders through storyboarding and translation of descriptive text to images.

As an introduction to The Outsider’s Storyboarding project, 8th graders planned a simple scene with storyboards and shot the scene based on the storyboards in the same class period.