Documentary Techniques in Blackfish

Not a long blog today, just thought I'd share a resource that relates specifically to the film Blackfish and more generally to studying documentaries. It's something I would use with Stage 5 (Year 9 or 10)... I created it a couple of years ago and meant to put it on the blog but forgot in the chaos of 2020's pandemic. 

Anyway, it's a glossary activity that serves a dual purpose:

• It lets students express their understanding and/or learn about a range of techniques used in the construction of documentaries (you'll note the inclusion of anthropomorphism - this is because it's particular to Blackfish).
• The teacher can use this as an opportunity to gauge student understanding of a range of techniques that they may or may not have learned prior to this study. As teachers we often find ourselves teaching students that we might not have taught in previous years - these students no doubt have already been taught a range of techniques relevant to the study of English, but no two English teachers cover the exact same things so it's always useful to check-in and see what the students know.

Anyway, it's not a complex activity. Students are shown a range of definitions and must then match them to the technique names. 

1. Give students this worksheet. 
2. The teacher walks the students through this PowerPoint so they can see a range of definitions. Students are to write the definitions in on the worksheet where they think they fit.  
3. Students can then either A) Numerically order the techniques in order of familiarity, or B) Give each one a score out of 3 in terms of how familiar they are with them. 

The last step is important to teachers as it provides an opportunity for Assessment for Learning, and can help identify areas that will need introduction or reinforcement with the class. 

Disclaimer: All of the above resources were created specifically for this blog in my own spare time.