Lesson 4

"MADE FOR TELEVISION"

Grade Level:

11 - 12

Subjects:

  • English/Language Arts
  • Social Studies
  • Fine Arts
  • Vocational/Technical Skills

Learner Outcomes:

The student will:
  • Distinguish between the "truth" of poetry and the "truth" of prose
  • Analyze the effect of media journalism in reporting the events of the period
  • Interpret the role of a war correspondent using video technology
  • Compose a written, journalistic report
  • Understand the effect of the media on art and music
  • Appraise a song of the period according to style, theme, and literary content
  • Contrast the war songs of two different periods - Vietnam and WWII
  • Distinguish the characteristics of Expressionist Art
  • Understand the "Happenings" movement and prepare a "happening" for exhibition

Duration of Lesson:

Twelve 41-minute class periods

Materials:

Technology Tools/Courseware:

  • computer lab
  • laptop/computer with PowerPoint
  • data projector
  • digital video camera equipment

Teacher Notes:

  • Schedule computer lab
  • Have access to Internet for presentation
  • Review school's acceptable use policy for work on the Internet
  • Preview web links for those that may be out of date

Procedures:

  • Read the four accounts about Norman Morrison and analyze the literary style focusing on the "truth" of poetry vs. the "truth" of prose and discriminate issues such as emotional impact, editorializing, selection and organization of detail and tone.
  • Using news clips, show how the Vietnam War was delivered to the homes of America and discuss how this affected society's perception of the war.
    • "Norman Morrison" from Out Loud by Adrian Mitchell (London: W.H. Allen Publishers)
    • "Norman Morrison" by David Ferguson from Where is Vietnam?  American Poets Respond, edited by Walter Lowenfels (Anchor Books, 1967)
    • "Of Late" from White Paper by George Starbuck (Poetry Magazine, 1965)
    • "The Pacifists" from TIME magazine, November 12, 1965.
         Note:  All four selections are included in the text,
                  Advanced Placement Poetry, John Manear
                     (Center for Learning Publication)
                     ISBN 0-697-02607-8
  • Research the television war correspondents and their role of bringing the frontline to the living room
    • Students will select an event that occurred during the war and role-play as a war correspondent using video equipment
    • Students will also write a news article about the event following the guidelines of journalistic reporting.
  • Discuss the effect of television and the media on art and music.
  • Each student will select a song of the period, research the composer and the performer(s), determine the musical style and purpose, and obtain a digital recording of it.  The song will be analyzed and evaluated for the effectiveness of literary device regarding theme, tone, mood, allusion, diction, and imagery.  (Recordings will be used in the IMEx at the end of the unit.)
    • Dominant themes 
      • Dance records - "Hully Gully," "Twist," "The Watusi"
      • Summer lifestyle - "Surfin'," "Groovin"
      • Non-violent rebellion - "Leader of the Pack," "He Hit Me"
      • Implied sex-drugs - "Stoned," "Daytripper," "Yellow Submarine"
      • Rebellion - "Street Fighting Man," "My Generation," "Nowhere Man"
      • Unity and Solidarity - "Why Don't They Understand?," "No Man is an Island"
      • Civil rights - "I've Been Trying," "Amen," "I Believe I'm Gonna Make It"
      • Explicit sex-drugs - "Let's Spend the Night Together," "Light My Fire"
      • Introspective protest - "Unknown Soldier," "Give Peace a Chance"
      • Social consciousness - "Don't Be a Drop-Out," "Love Child," "U.S. Male"
      • Rock lifestyle - "So You Want to be a Rock and Roll Star"

       
    • Musical Styles 
      • Rhythm and Blues, early: Ray Charles, The Drifters
      • Do-Wop vocal groups: The Passions, Shirelles
      • Motown:  Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight and the Pips
      • Southern Rhythm and Blues: James Brown, Ike and Tina Turner
      • Rock and Roll:  Elvis Presley, The Band
      • Folk Rock:  Bob Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel
      • California Rock and Roll: Beach Boys, Righteous Brothers
      • British Rock and Roll: Beatles, Rolling Stones
      • British Hard Rock: Cream, Jimi Hendrix
      • Latin Rock:  Santana, Sly and the Family Stone
      • San Francisco Rock: Jefferson Airplane, Big Brother and the Holding Company
      • LA Rock:  The Doors, Steppenwolf
  • Contrast the lyrics of Vietnam War era songs and those of WWII - the "unpopular war" vs. the "popular war"
  • Present Expressionist Art (emphasis on Marcel Duchamp's Nude Descending a Staircase") and discuss its relationship to the period
  • Cooperative groups will research and discuss "Happenings" and how the media facilitated this movement.  Each group will develop a "happening" to be incorporated in the IMEx at the conclusion of the unit.

Modifications:

Provide adaptations that meet with student IEPs

Enrichment Activities:

  • The student will trace the development of folk protest music, focusing on the development of a style or the maturation of a particular artist's work.
  • Choose one 1960's album and identify the overall theme and tone relating it to the time period, e.g. Arlo Guthrie's "Alice's Restaurant."
  • Categorize songs of the 1960s according to the dominant musical themes.
  • With Duchamp's Nude Descending a Staircase as a guide, create a two-dimensional expressionistic work emphasizing multiple movement.  A variety of media may be used including computer graphics software.

Evaluation/Assessment:

  • Role-play presentation will be evaluated for delivery, content, and effective use of technology using a teacher-generated rubric
  • Guidelines for effective news writing (i.e., Who, What, Where, When, How, accuracy, impact, and grammatical construction) will set the criterion of the evaluation rubric for the journalistic report
  • Students will write an essay from a writing prompt to demonstrate their understanding of the effect of the media on art and music
  • Students will write an essay from a writing prompt to contrast the difference in war songs of the Vietnam War and WWII
  • "Happenings" will be evaluated using an art rubric for the effective use of the elements and principles of art

West Virginia IGOs:

National Standards:

  • Language Arts:
    • NL-ENG.K-12.1, NL-ENG.K-12.3, NL-ENG.K-12.4, NL-ENG.K-12.5, NL-ENG.K-12.6, NL-ENG.K-12.7, NL-ENG.K-12.8, NL-ENG.K-12.12
  • Social Studies:
    • NSS-USH.5-12.9, NSS-USH.5-12.10, NSS-WH.5-12.8
  • Art:
    • NA-VA.9-12.1, NA-VA.9-12.2, NA-VA.9-12.3, NA-VA.9-12.4, NA-VA.9-12.5, NA-VA.9-12.6

Job/Career Clusters:

Fine Arts and Humanities

References:

The History of the United States:  American Voices, ScottForesman, publ.

Additional Resources:

Links to Lessons:

   Unit Plan

"As You Shall See"
Lesson 1

"Doomed to Remember"
Lesson 2

"The Voice"
Lesson 3

"The Grave"
Lesson 4

"MADE FOR TELEVISION"
Lesson 5

"Time to Leave...
Too Many Ghosts"

Created By:

George Washington High School


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