20 teaching ideas for non-fiction and media
(reading)
Tweet tweet. To practise the art of summarising key information, give students a
selection of short news stories and ask them to condense them into tweets for the
newspaper’s Twitter page.
Tabloid vs. broadsheet. Choose articles on a recent event, for students to
annotate/label with relevant media features and terms, to create a profile of each
newspaper type, quoting examples from the texts in support. Teachit’s resources
Tabloid or broadsheet? and Newspaper placemat writing frame and template
should help to support this.
Black and white vs. colour. Choose an image from a past exam paper or prerelease booklet and make a black and white copy for each student to annotate
with reactions and analysis. Then show the colour version on an IWB so they can
discuss the impact of colour, changes in interpretation etc.
Newspaper comparisons. Pick a current or controversial story such as the
London riots. Look at how it was depicted in a tabloid newspaper and broadsheet
newspaper and compare the language and layout.
Post-it revision. In small groups, each student is given a Post-it and ask them to
choose an example of a type of non-fiction text (e.g. website, leaflet, newspaper
report etc.) which they should stick on a peer’s forehead. By asking only yes/no
questions, each student takes it in turn to try to guess what they have on their
forehead.
Property poster. Show some property adverts on an IWB and discuss their use
of language. Let students research online or use a local free paper and create a
poster of a property for sale, using Estate Agents’ jargon (what they say e.g.
compact, mature) and what they can mean (e.g. small, overgrown).
Get your facts straight. To stress the difference between fact and opinion, give
groups of four a topic to debate. One student must only use facts in the
discussion, one only opinion and one who disguises opinion as fact. The fourth
student is an observer who must guess which is which and then feedback what
they saw to the rest of the class.
Classroom salesman. Students put their knowledge and use of persuasive
techniques to the test by being challenged to persuade their peers to ‘buy’
something obscure from your bag of tricks. They get a point for every persuasive
technique used!
Spot the difference. Compile a series of short text snippets, e.g. a news report,
travel writing, a property description, advert, charity leaflet etc. on an A3 sheet.
For added challenge, include examples of narrative texts too. Small groups
should to try identify the different text types / features, and explain how they
recognised each text type.
Can words paint a picture? Give students a written description of a car or
building etc. If they highlight all visual references, such as shape, size, or colour,
can they draw what’s described? Next, give students a picture of an event, e.g. a
ceremony, a protest – can they ‘read’ the picture and report what’s happening?
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20 teaching ideas for non-fiction and media
(reading)
Uncovering bias. Choose a newspaper sports report, such as a Premiership
football match, and ask students to find examples of bias. Which team is
favoured and how is this bias conveyed? Teachit’s resource Bias – what is it?
may be useful in preparation. Discuss the importance of spotting bias, e.g. in
politics.
Junk mail art. Get students to collect junk mail to bring into class. Label and
analyse the use of persuasive techniques, and make into attractive collages.
Set your own exam. Give students the Teachit resource An apple a day (section
A) to help them devise a comprehension task or question in the style of your
exam board’s exam or controlled assessment, using three texts, as currently
required. They should also create a mark scheme, then swap papers with
another group.
What’s in a name? Blow up images of newspaper mastheads for groups to
annotate, analysing as much as they can in terms of iconography, presentational
devices and meaning. Pass on to another group to see if they can find more
before feeding back to the class.
Fact and opinion. Using The Rough Guide to Britain’s entry for Durham
cathedral, students should highlight facts and opinions. Repeat with Bryson’s
description in Chapter 24 of Notes from a Small Island. Both texts can be found
online. Discuss the differences betwee the two texts. The Teachit resource
Presenting opinion contains analysis of Bryson’s writing in this chapter.
Slogan challenge. Divide the class into two teams. Each team must come up
with a short quiz for the other in which they must fill in the blanks of advertising
slogans. After the quiz is marked, the team must then annotate and analyse the
effect of the language in each of their original slogans.
Create a great glossary. Using past papers and mark schemes, students could
create glossaries of terms, analysing language features and their effects (parts of
speech, sentence types, literary techniques etc.) and presentational features /
effects (genre or text conventions, photos, colours etc.).
Bias baiting. Pairs agree a sporting or school event they will both watch. One
writes a biased report whilst the other’s is unbiased. Compare the difference in
language. Alternatively you could show a controversial clip such as a sporting or
news event to provoke this.
Pictionary! Students test their knowledge of non-fiction terminology by drawing
the term and their team or partner have to try to guess it.
Adding adjectives. Choose a brochure/website holiday resort description and
remove the adjectives. Students should then put in their own choices, first
negative, then positive and compare the effects, e.g. of shabby and noisy vs.
charming and bustling. Why do holiday companies use the latter?
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