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Construction Engineers

Unit 3 Lesson/Challenge #3

Lesson #3: Media's Hidden Messages

We will be exploring these images and the roles people/concepts play in these messages in order to think critically about how messages are constructed. 

Challenge #3: Deconstructing the Familiar

We will be looking at familiar media and unpacking them through various observational lenses (different aspects and questions). 

LESSON #3
Media's Hidden Messages 

WHY this lesson? 

The media continues to be intentional with every image and message it portrays. From pictures to movies to news reports, the words, images, and people continue to play a significant role in what it communicates to us both directly and indirectly. For this lesson, we will be exploring these images and the roles people/concepts play in these messages in order to think critically about how messages are constructed. 

  • This kind of conversation and analysis is not easy. Take a moment to listen to speaker Colin Stokes talk about the impact of gender roles in movies (specifically comparing “Wizard of Oz” and “Star Wars”) in his TED Talk “How Movies Teach Manhood”

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  • Thinking Questions: 

    • What epiphanies (or new ideas) did you have when examining this TED Talk?​

    • What does this conversation make you think about or connect to personally?

CHALLENGE #3
Deconstructing the Familiar

WHY this challenge? 

Sometimes media messages can be hidden or clouded by the media we love the most - like television and movies. While there are television shows and movies that represent our personal favorites, it's important to deconstruct these spaces to see what other messages exist in those familiar spaces.  

Groups & Organization

Create a group of two no more than three people (including yourself). Make a copy of the provided graphic organizer and share it with your group member(s). 

Choosing Your Text to Deconstruct

Choose a familiar television or movie that you share between you and your partner or group. This can be a movie or a television series. Within that movie or television series, determine as a team a 20-25 minute clip that you'll be analyzing for this challenge exercise. 

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*Please check in with Mrs. Bonner to communicate your text choice before moving forward.

Watch and Collect Data

Follow the directions of the graphic organizer from Part 1.

 

Collaborate with your group to collect data while watching your selected movie or television moment. â€‹

Blog Post & Reflection

When you've completed your graphic organizer as a team, post your organizer to your blog page and make sure that it’s labeled appropriately “Unit 3 Deconstructing the Familiar.”

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In addition, post a brief reflection discussing your epiphanies (or new thoughts) based on your experiences in connection to your work with your chosen text. Use the following questions to help formulate your reflection:

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  • What are your epiphanies (or new ideas) as a result of this experience?

  • How might your epiphanies connect to the work we've already talked about in Unit 3?

  • What conclusions can you draw from this experience?

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