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Changing Communities

The project

The children will use the medium of podcasting to produce a 10 minute presentation of their changing community. It will answer the questions:

  1. What is our community like now?
    • Who lives here?
    • What are the buildings like/for?
    • What is the transport system like?
    • What forms of recreation are popular/available?
    • What is our school like?
  2. What was our community like 50 years ago? (To enable children to use interviews as sources of information)
  3. What was our community like 100 years ago? (To develop children as researchers using census data, photo-archives, museums services etc)

The uploaded podcast will be used by children in other schools to identify questions about community being presented, and these will be recorded and emailed to the source school to incorporate and respond to oin a follow up podcast three weeks later.

Objectives covered

  • to investigate places
  • to use geographical questions
  • to developawareness of how places relate to each other
  • to use secondary sources
  • to use geographical vocabulary
  • to develop the use of fieldwork skills
  • to identify main physical and human features
  • to collect, record and analyse data
  • to develop an awareness of economic activities
  • how people affect the environment
  • how the features of localities influence the nature and location of human activities

ICT capability

Techniques

Sequencing audio recordings within a media library application.

Processes

Designing and refining ICT work with sensitivity to audience and purpose

Concepts

That the Internet enables people to listen to audio podcasts on-demand and allows for the publication of their work to a large audience

Literacy capability

Speaking

  • Tell a story using notes designed to cue techniques, such as repetition, recap and humour
  • Present a spoken argument, sequencing points logically, defending views with evidence and making use of persuasive language
  • Use and explore different question types

Listening and responding

  • Understand, recall and respond to speakers’ implicit and explicit meanings
  • Explain and comment on speakers’ use of language, including vocabulary, grammar and non-verbal features

Group discussion and interaction

  • Plan and manage a group task over time using different levels of planning
  • Understand different ways to take the lead and support others in groups
  • Understand the process of decision making

Drama

  • Reflect on how working in role helps to explore complex issues
  • Perform a scripted scene making use of dramatic conventions
  • Use and recognise the impact of theatrical effects in drama

Background/prior learning

Children will need to be able to:

  • record and save sounds digitally
  • locate, select and import sound files into a program
  • click and drag, select and delete as appropriate to create an audio file

Activity Description

The class will be introduced to a key event/time in the history of the local community and will divide into 4 mixed ability groups to identify:

  • The background – history and geography of the area
  • Specific information relating to the key event
  • The response of the local community
  • The implications of the event
  • The teacher could facilitate this through use of ‘Hot Seat’ and ‘Freeze
  • Frame’ to develop children’s understanding and empathy with the people affected.

Each group would use a sound editing package such as Audacity to produce 2½ minutes of the 10 minute podcast (MP3 format) to include key information and interviews with participants (children in role). This would be shared via the YHFfL portal for other schools to access.

Partner schools would listen to the podcast and through paired work/whole class discussion identify at least one question to record and email to the source school that requires more than a simple yes/no response. These should be forwarded within a three week period.

Three weeks later the source school would respond to the questions by incorporating the forwarded sound files into a second 10 minute podcast, and respond appropriately and in role. Each of the original groups could take one or two questions each.

Teacher confidence and skills needed

  • Know how to create a sound file in Sound Recorder
  • The basics of the software that will enable sound files to be manipulated and edited

Vocabulary

  • drafting, redrafting, editing, sound file, timeline
  • oral drafting, oral redrafting, choral speaking, list poem, audience, purpose, expression, tone, volume, use of voices

Aspects of Learning

Collaboration ~ creativity ~ enquiry ~ problem solving ~ social ~ empathy

Resources

  • Sound Recorder (freely available on most systems) and software that will allow the user to link together a number of sound files in any order. Microphones may also be required.
  • Alternative recording software – Audacity – freely downloadable from the web
  • Help sheet ~ How to Record a Sound

Specific units

Developed from year 5 Geography - Unit 13 ‘A contrasting UK locality’

Where this work fits with end of year statements

The children will:

  • Analyse information and ask questions using complex searches
  • Design and create and evaluate their own presentations maximising the use of ICT to present information in different ways (in this case sounds)
  • In order to solve a problem use ICT to collect and process data and present their findings