The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Breaking news!: Turning a drawing into
a news segment1
By Summer Pennell
In this multimodal lesson for 6-12 English Language Arts and
Information and Technology Skills, students will create a news
video in groups to describe the drawing The Flood (hi-res image).
For students who work better independently, there is an option for
creating a Twitter feed. ELA teachers could also partner with
Social Studies teachers to discuss how current events are
portrayed in the media.
Instructional objectives
Students will:
 Analyze Boilly’s drawing The Flood from the perspective of a
news team
 Create a 3-5 minute news video of the event depicted in The
Flood from a chosen angle (human interest, environmental,
government protection, etc.)
 Use technology to complete the project (video, sound,
images- depending on availability)
1
A project supported by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation
Teacher planning
Before completing this lesson, students should be familiar with
how to use a video camera and editing software. This lesson does
not teach these skills, but could be used to reinforce them.
Time required
Depending on the desired complexity of the end product, student
access to technology, and time spent outside of class, this could
take at least two 90-minute blocks or four 45-minute periods.
Materials
 Classroom computer with internet access connected to a
multimedia projector to show:
o A video of news coverage of a flood
o Boilly’s The Flood
 Student computers or access to a computer lab
 Video cameras (web cameras can work if they are the only
option)
 Video editing software. See here, here and here for
possibilities, and here for sound editing.
 Chart paper/ poster board/ construction paper and
markers/pens for set design
 Various found/recyclable materials for video props and
costumes
 Instruction sheets:
o News Segment Video Instructions
o Twitter Feed: Live-tweeting the News (if using)
2
Teacher preparation
You will likely want to decide on the student groups (5-6 students
per group) before starting the lesson. Additionally, if you have
students who do not work well in groups, they can be assigned to
make a Twitter and/or Instagram feed from a chosen angle. The
Twitter component can also be given to the group so that students
who aren’t involved directly in editing the video will have another
task. Lastly, you should decide how you want students to turn in
their videos.
Instructions
1. Ask students if they’ve seen coverage on the news of natural
disasters. If so, ask them to describe it. They may say things
like: the news shows video and pictures of the event, they
interview victims, they talk to people leading rescue efforts,
etc.
2. Next, show them this short clip about a flood. Ask students
to jot down any interesting details that stick out while they
watch, and to think about what point of view is shown in the
video.
3. After watching the video, ask for student responses. Ask if
they noticed:
a. The title and logo for the event (Raging Waters: The
Colorado Floods)
b. The angle/focus on human interests, as evidenced by:
1) interviewing a woman holding a toddler, 2) video of
the National Guard busses filled with frightened
children, 3) a video of the sheriff becoming emotional
during a press conference, and 4) a still picture of two
people hugging among the devastation
3
4. Ask students what perspective or angle they think the news
story was going for, given this evidence? (Students should
say human interest or something similar).
5. Ask students what other angles are possible for a news story
about a flood? Students may answer environmental,
government preparedness/rescue, financial costs of the
disaster, etc.
6. Next, tell students that people have been interested in
disasters and current events for a long time, and that next
they will look at a drawing from 1808. Project Boilly’s The
Flood for students to see. Tell students that art historians
speculate that the artist was motivated to create this piece
by a newspaper story of Napoleon’s soldiers rescuing a
family from a flood. Today, they will imagine what this news
story may have been like and create a video news segment.
They can think of the video they just watched, and you may
want to give them permission to look up other news stories.
a. Note: for a more in-depth examination of the drawing,
teachers may want to facilitate an art interpretation
circle before students begin their news segment. An
instructional guide is also available on the “Teacher
Resources” page associated with the Boilly project on
the Ackland’s website.
7. Tell students that to make an interesting news story, they
must decide what angle they are telling it from. Refer back to
the video to discuss different ideas for perspectives.
Facilitate a short discussion about Boilly’s drawing to
brainstorm different ideas, and record them on the board.
8. Next, project the News Segment Video Instructions (p. 7).
Go over these with students and answer any questions.
Stress that students must begin by carefully examining The
Flood, and that they must incorporate elements of the
drawing into their news story. Make sure students realize the
video should be between 3-5 minutes.
4
9. If using the Twitter component, go over this with students
too.
10. Divide the students into groups, if not already sitting that
way. Pass out one News Segment Video Instructions sheet
per group, and the Twitter Feed: Live-Tweeting the News
sheet as necessary. Project The Flood again or instruct
students to look at it on computers.
11. Instruct groups to begin working. By the end of the first
class session, they should have chosen a story angle, and
their brainstorming should be complete. Some groups may
have begun writing and/or storyboarding. Circulate around
the room to answer any questions.
12. Ensure that students have access to the necessary
equipment and that you or another staff member are
available to troubleshoot when needed.
13. When everyone’s videos are complete, show them to the
class and have the students speculate on the desired angle
before the group discusses their intended meaning.
Assessments
The finished video is the main assessment. You can assess it
with the provided rubric (p. 11, also included as a Word document
titled Student Handouts Breaking News). Please note that this
rubric was created to assess the objectives of this project, and
does not include detailed assessment criteria for video
techniques. If you wish to include these as well, you can find a list
of suggested rubrics for video projects from this website.
To assess a Twitter feed, make sure that students followed the
guidelines, and (if applicable) that it relates to their group’s video.
5
Standards
Common Core: ELA
W.3 • Text Types and Purposes
Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or
events using effective technique, well-chosen details, and wellstructured event sequences.
RL.1 • Key Ideas and Details
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of
what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the
text.
North Carolina Essential Standards: Information and
Technology Skills
TT.1 • Technology as a Tool
Use technology and other resources for assigned tasks.
Extensions: Works of art that
document, or are inspired by, real
events
Sue Coe, Poultry Packing Fire, 1991, Pastel, gouache, and
graphite
Dinh Q. Lê, Untitled #9 from Cambodia: Splendor and Darkness,
1998, C-print
Moyo Okediji, The Dutchman, 1995, Acrylic on canvas
6
Burk Uzzle, Woodstock (Crowd in Field with Tent and Trash),
1969, Gelatin silver print
Kurz & Allison, Great Conemaugh Valley Disaster -- Flood and
Fire..., 1890, Color lithograph
7
Group members’ names: ________________________________________________________________
News Segment Video Instructions: Boilly’s The Flood
You will create a news segment (3-5 minutes) based on Boilly’s drawing, The Flood. First, you
should decide who will do what role. Everyone must do something, and all roles must be taken.
Some people can do more than one role as necessary, and for some roles it is OK to have more
than one person. Read the descriptions together, and then write down who is going to do what
next to the role title.
Role
Director
Description
Who’s taking it?
Your job is to direct the news video and rehearsals.
Decide how the actors should stand, pose, talk, etc.
Work with the writer, designer, and editors to decide
how all these pieces will work together, and how you
will transition between sections.
Camera
You will film the news segment, working with the
Operator
director and actors. Make sure you know how to use the
equipment, that you frame the shots well, that the
sound is working, etc.
Writer
While everyone should contribute ideas to your news
story, the writer is responsible for putting it all together
into a coherent piece. It is very important that your
story shows the group’s chosen perspective. Make sure
you write not only a script, but camera and stage
directions. Work with the graphics and set designer so
that your video looks seamless.
News
You need at least 1 news anchor, and other actors as
Anchors &
necessary for your story. Work with the director and
Actor(s)
writer to make sure you are conveying the desired mood
through your tone of voice, facial expressions, and body
language.
Graphic and Your job is to create a graphic to use in the news
set
segment (think of the news video from Colorado). It can
designer(s) be simple, as long as it conveys the message of the
story. You should also make any necessary props for the
story (drawn backdrop, pretend photographs of the
flood, etc.) as well as costumes.
Video
You are responsible for editing the video together using
editor(s)
video software. Make sure the transitions between
scenes are smooth. If possible, add sound effects and/or
music that match your chosen perspective. As you work,
share your progress with the group, especially the
director.
8
Steps to make your video:
1. As a group, look carefully at The Flood and discuss what you see. What elements stand
out the most? What figures are you most interested in? Use this to plan your news
story. Remember that you must include elements of the drawing in your news story.
2. Decide together what story angle you want to pursue, and how it relates to the drawing.
The writer should take notes during this brainstorming session.
3. Once that has been decided, the writer should lead the discussion of the story. Decide
on what props and graphics the designer should work on. After the major decisions have
been made, the writer can begin writing the script, with the assistance of the director.
4. In the meantime, the designers can work with the director and actors on the props and
costumes.
5. The camera operator and video editor should make sure the equipment is ready, and
help the designer as needed.
6. Next, the director should lead a rehearsal. Those not acting, operating the camera, or
directing should watch and offer feedback. Remember that the video should be 3-5
minutes long, so make sure you are timing rehearsals and adjusting as needed.
7. Once the director is satisfied with rehearsals, and props are made, filming can begin.
8. After filming is complete, the video editor begins their work. The editor may determine
that some parts need to be re-filmed.
HINT: Make sure you are consulting the rubric! All the sections of the rubric depend on the
team working together.
9
Twitter Feed: Live-tweeting the News
Carefully examine Boilly’s The Flood and create a Twitter live-feed (on paper- not on the
computer) about the event from the perspective of a news station. Make sure you include
details from the drawing in your Tweets. If working as part of a group, make sure your Tweets
fit with the story angle of the group. If working individually, then you must decide what type of
story you want to tell.
Your Twitter feed must include:





Your news station’s Twitter username and image
A short description of the news station
30 Tweets (minimum) REMEMBER TWEETS CAN ONLY BE 140 CHARACTERS
o 20 of these must be from the news station
o 10 can be retweets from other sources. Who else would Tweet about this? Who
would retweet things from your user account? Use these to tell your story as
well.
o Put the Tweets in chronological order
 On Twitter, the newest would be on the top, but we’re going to do the
opposite for easy reading
Create a hashtag for the event (you may use others as warranted- be creative!)
Optional- include “photos” (can print out photos or draw them)
For ideas, check out these examples:
National News Networks
CNN https://twitter.com/CNN
Local News Stations
WRAL-5 (Raleigh, NC)
https://twitter.com/WRAL
Fox https://twitter.com/FoxNews
MSNBC https://twitter.com/msnbc
ABC news https://twitter.com/ABC
WSOCTV (Charlotte, NC)
https://twitter.com/wsoctv
WXII 12 (Winston-Salem & Greensboro, NC)
https://twitter.com/WXII
WMNCT (Greenville, NC)
https://twitter.com/wnct9
Examples of military organizations
US Coast Guard https://twitter.com/USCG
US National Guard
https://twitter.com/USNationalGuard
Examples of rescue organizations
West Vancouver Fire and Rescue
https://twitter.com/WestVanFireDept
Scottish Fire and Rescue
https://twitter.com/scotfire_north
10
Group Members:
The Flood News Segment Rubric
Details
from The
Flood
Story
Angle
4
Details from the drawing are
clearly evident, and prominent,
in the news story. It is obvious
the news story is about this
drawing in particular.
The angle of the story is clear
from all elements: writing,
directing, camera work and
editing, set and graphic design.
News
All elements are completed
Segment
well: the script is well written;
completion the acting rehearsed; the
directing, camera work, editing
& designs are effective. The
video feels finished & polished.
Continuity The transitions between
sections are smooth and clear.
The transitions make sense and
the audience can keep track of
the story.
Timing
3
There are some details from
the drawing in the news story,
but they may not stand out.
The angle of the story is
somewhat clear from all
elements: writing, directing,
camera work and editing, set
and graphic design.
All elements are completed
sufficiently. Some may not be
of top quality. The video feels
finished.
The transitions between
sections are mostly smooth and
clear. The audience can keep
track of the story.
2
There is a connection between
the drawing and the news
story, but it isn’t specific- the
story could have been about
any flood.
The angle of the story is hard to
determine, and/or not all of
the elements seem to be telling
the story for the same purpose.
1
There is no, or only a vague,
connection between the
drawing and the news story.
The audience may need an
explanation to understand it.
The story does not have a clear
angle: it is a dry telling of “the
facts” without any sense of
POV.
Most elements are completed
sufficiently. Some may not be
of top quality; some may not
be finished. The video feels
like a draft.
Many elements of the video
are incomplete and/or seem
unrehearsed. The video is
incomplete or not edited
together well.
Some of the transitions are
hard to follow, and the
audience may get lost at some
points. Not all of the elements
are completed smoothly.
The completed video is within
the time limit
The transitions are very rough,
and/or many of them are
confusing.
The completed video is under 3
or over 5 minutes
Comments:
11