For more information, visit http://cineclub.org.au

MEDIA LITERACY

“They developed an understanding of film language and the creative aspects of film production and are learning to be self-critical and reflect of their own work and others,” he says.

Specialist films selected by Cineclub for critiquing offer students a non-mainstream experience and include local and foreign movies, documentaries, and animations that cover a broad range of cultures, styles, subject matter and narrative structures, which are often challenging and complex.

Teachers use classroom resources to help the students examine how certain shots, sequences or scenes are put together, with a view to the students emulating these same techniques and professional methods when producing their own work.

During its filmmaking journey Dandenong South Primary School focused on silent films and how stories could be told without the use of words. Year 5 and 6 students were involved in all aspects of the film making process – writing, acting, directing, filming and editing – which helped to embed literacy skills and team work.

“The students looked at ways that ideas can be shown and manipulated. They considered different types of camera shots and angles and the impact they had on the viewer,” says principal Leonie Fitzgerald.

To celebrate their cinematic journey, more than 200 students from the nine participating schools attended a special screening of their work at Reading Cinema in Dandenong. Ms Fitzgerald says this was a special moment for the budding filmmakers.

“The screening was extremely worthwhile. It gave a real purpose to the filmmaking process and allowed parents to also view their children’s work. There was a real buzz in the cinema and it was great to see work from other schools as well. The students were given an opportunity to answer questions about their film and you could see that they were very proud of what they had achieved and very excited to have their work shown to a real audience.” I

TERM 3 & 4 PROGRAMSat 18 Aug REVISITING SPELLING Years 2-6 with Deb Sukarna

Sat 1 Sep INTRODUCTION TO WRITER’S WORKSHOP Prep to Year 6 with Deb Sukarna

Sat 8 Sep PLANNING AN INTEGRATED UNIT Prep to Year 6 with Deb Sukarna

Sat 20 Oct WRITING AND GRAMMAR The Joy of Writing - Prep to Year 2 with Deb Sukarna Grammar - Years 3 to 6 with David Hornsby

Sat 27 Oct REVISITING WRITER’S WORKSHOP Prep to Year 6 with Deb Sukarna

Sat 17 Nov ORGANISING A READER’S WORKSHOP Years 2 to 6 with Deb Sukarna

Contact: Paula Welham 9499 2065 or 0402 421 864 Email: pwelham@bigpond.net.au

A practical professional development day with

DAVID HORNSBY and DEB SUKARNA DAVID HORNSBY and DEB SUKARNAFull details in FAX sent to School

Venue: Darebin Arts and Entertainment Centre (Cnr Bell St and St Georges Rd, Preston)

Time: 9.30 am Registration, 10.00 am Start, 3.15 pm Finish

Cost: $190 inc gst (or $170 per person for two or more teachers from the one school). Includes registration, morning tea, lunch, hand-outs.

Whenever you change your contact details –whether it’s your home address or email address –it’s important not only to let your employer know,

but let us know too.

During the year you will receive importantinformation from the Victorian Institute of Teaching,

including your annual invoice.

So it’s important to let us know when your contactdetails change.

Go to www.vit.vic.edu.au/updatemydetails

HAVE YOU MOVED HOUSEOR CHANGED YOUR EMAIL

ADDRESS RECENTLY?

Keep us updated – and we’ll keep you updated.

MEDIA LITERACY

RANGEBANK PRIMARY School is one of nine schools in the Southern Metropolitan region to have signed up for the Cineclub Film for Thought program launched in Australia this year. Cineclub is a network for young filmmakers to make, watch and share films with each other.

“The students are growing up in a visual environment and the Cineclub program allows them to explore this ever-expanding world,” says Rangebank Primary School teacher Michelle Bold.

“The program allows children to become critical thinkers, analysing everything they see and hear. They begin to question the purpose of a film or advertisement.”

Established in the UK in 2004, Cineclub has trained nearly 1000 teachers to set up and run sustainable filmmaking and film-watching projects for primary students using low-budget digital technology and free editing software, equipping nearly 15,000 children as young as seven with the skills to help them make and share their own films.

The program includes teacher training, resources, access to specialist films to view and critique, regular cinema screening events of student work, and film competitions to celebrate their achievements.

“At Rangebank Primary School the students have thoroughly enjoyed responding to the short films supplied by Cineclub, analysing sound effects, special effects, background music, camera angles and techniques and the various roles associated with the production of a movie,” says Ms Bold.

“The students are shown a range of short films and animations that are not mainstream releases with follow-up activities that allow them to critically examine what they are seeing. They become more aware of what they are watching and develop a vocabulary that allows them to better express their ideas and opinions about media. The students are then encouraged to apply what they have learnt to produce their own short films and animations.”

Cineclub has proved a perfect fit for Wallarano Primary School, where digital learning is already a core focus. Principal David Duff says 16 Year 4 students have taken part in the program this year.

“Students at Wallarano are already on a digital learning journey and we believe visual literacy is an essential component as we fully embrace 21st century learning. The Cineclub project encourages learning, critical understanding, conversation and debate and gives young people a vehicle

Learning through film

Fast FactsWho: Dandenong South Primary School, Rangebank Primary School, Wallarano Primary School

What: Cineclub Film for Thought program

Why: to engage children in media literacy through the making, watching and sharing of films

In a media saturated society, student media literacy is becoming an increasingly important focus in the classroom, writes Caroline Reidy.

Berwick Fields Primary SchoolCarwartha College P–12Dandenong South Primary School

Hampton Park Primary SchoolRangebank Primary SchoolResurrection Primary SchoolTimbarra P–9 CollegeWallarano Primary School

Cineclub schools 2012

for their creativity. The project provides a purpose and focus to develop these essential skills. We are aiming to transform the whole-school culture into one where multimedia is infused naturally into all learning experiences. Throughout the remainder of this year, all 118 Year 4 students will have the opportunity to benefit from the Cineclub project with the original 16 students acting as mentors for their peers. We anticipate all students from Years 4 to 6 will become skilled filmmakers in 2013 and beyond,” he says.

“The students found the Cineclub project to be fun, interesting, relevant, purposeful and of course challenging,” Mr Duff adds. “The project was an active learning experience that involved the students in doing, thinking and interacting. It gave them an opportunity to take ownership of their own learning and the time to acquire and consolidate learning in a range of areas including problem solving, higher-order thinking and research strategies, making authentic choices, planning and designing, monitoring, reviewing and evaluating. It also encouraged the students to accept responsibility for their own learning through working both independently and cooperatively in a group situation, creatively demonstrating and presenting their learning, including performance, with the incorporation of ICT as a key learning tool.

Mr Duff says each project member experienced every aspect of the film production including script development, storyboarding, acting, directing, cinematography, sound and the editing process.

INSPIRE AUGUST 201242

This article first appeared in Inspire magazine, August 2012

INSPIRE AUGUST 2012 43