The Arts · Foundation · Digital Stories and Screen Magic · Term 3

Media Messages: What are they telling us?

Beginning to understand that media communicates messages and can influence feelings.

• ACARA Content Descriptions
• AC9AMAFR01
• AC9AMAFE03

About This Topic

In Foundation Media Arts, students start to identify messages in media like advertisements and cartoons, and notice how these shape feelings such as excitement or worry. They respond to simple media artworks by describing intended purposes, for example, how bright colours in a toy ad create joy or slow music in a story builds sadness. This matches AC9AMAFR01 for exploring media and AC9AMAFE03 for recognising meanings and effects.

The topic builds foundational media literacy alongside emotional awareness and descriptive language skills. Students learn to explain creator choices, critique clarity, and connect media to personal responses, preparing them for analysing digital content later. Group sharing refines their ability to articulate observations.

Active learning excels with this topic because young learners process messages through creation and play. When students draw their own ads, role-play cartoon scenes, or vote on confusing messages in pairs, they experience persuasion directly. These hands-on tasks turn passive viewing into active insight, boosting engagement and retention.

Key Questions

1. Explain how a commercial tries to make you feel a certain way.
2. Analyze what message a short cartoon is trying to send.
3. Critique whether a media message is clear or confusing.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze how visual elements like colour and sound in a television advertisement are used to create a specific feeling, such as excitement or happiness.
• Explain the main message conveyed by a short animated film, identifying what the characters or narrator are trying to communicate.
• Critique a simple digital poster by stating whether its message is easy to understand or if it is confusing, and suggest one way to make it clearer.
• Compare the emotional responses evoked by two different media messages, such as a toy commercial and a public service announcement for children.

Before You Start

Identifying Emotions

Why: Students need to be able to recognize and name basic emotions in themselves and others to understand how media affects feelings.

Basic Communication Skills

Why: Students should have foundational skills in listening and speaking to engage with media messages and articulate their responses.

Key Vocabulary

Media Message	Information or ideas that are communicated through forms like television, movies, or online content.
Persuade	To try and convince someone to think or act in a certain way, often by making something seem appealing or important.
Emotion	A strong feeling, such as happiness, sadness, anger, or fear, that can be influenced by what we see or hear.
Visual Element	Parts of a media message that you can see, such as colours, pictures, or characters.
Sound Element	Parts of a media message that you can hear, such as music, voices, or sound effects.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

All media messages tell the exact truth.

What to Teach Instead

Media often persuades for specific responses, like buying toys. Small group discussions of familiar ads let students compare personal feelings to creator intent, revealing bias through shared examples.

Common Misconception

Messages come only from spoken words.

What to Teach Instead

Images, music, and actions carry strong messages too. Hands-on recreation in pairs, where students mimic visuals without sound, highlights non-verbal elements and clarifies their role.

Common Misconception

Media messages never confuse anyone.

What to Teach Instead

Some messages mix signals, leading to mixed feelings. Whole class voting on ad clarity, followed by redesign tasks, helps students spot confusion and practice clearer communication.

Active Learning Ideas

Stations Rotation: Message Hunt Stations

Prepare four stations with short ads, cartoons, safety clips, and toy promotions on tablets. At each, students watch, draw the main message, and note feelings it creates. Groups rotate every 7 minutes and share one finding per station.

35 min·Small Groups

Pairs: Feeling Freeze Frames

Show 30-second media clips. Pairs watch, then freeze in poses showing the emotion the message evokes. Partners guess the message and explain why, switching roles for next clip.

25 min·Pairs

Whole Class: Our Class Ad Creation

Brainstorm a class message like 'Share toys'. Assign roles for drawing, acting, and narrating. Film a simple 1-minute ad with phones, then watch and critique clarity together.

45 min·Whole Class

Individual: Message Mood Boards

Provide magazines or printed images. Students cut and paste to make a board showing a clear message and feelings it gives. Label with words or drawings, then gallery walk to share.

30 min·Individual

Real-World Connections

• Children's television programmers and advertisers at companies like the ABC or commercial networks carefully choose bright colours and upbeat music to make young viewers feel happy and interested in a show or product.
• Movie trailers use exciting music and quick cuts to make audiences feel eager to see a new film, influencing their decision to buy a ticket at the cinema.
• Graphic designers create posters for school events, using specific images and text to clearly communicate the date, time, and purpose of the event to students and parents.

Assessment Ideas

Exit Ticket

Show students a short, simple advertisement (e.g., for a fruit snack). Ask them to draw one picture showing how the ad made them feel and write one word describing the main message they think it was trying to send.

Discussion Prompt

Present two different images or short video clips (e.g., a cartoon character looking sad vs. a cartoon character looking excited). Ask students: 'How do these pictures make you feel? What do you think the characters are thinking or wanting?' Record their responses on a whiteboard.

Quick Check

Display a simple digital poster with a clear message (e.g., 'Recycle Today!'). Ask students to give a thumbs up if the message is easy to understand and a thumbs down if it is confusing. Follow up by asking one or two students who gave a thumbs down to explain why.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does active learning help teach media messages in Foundation?

Active strategies like role-playing ads or creating mood boards give students direct experience sending and receiving messages. They feel persuasion through acting emotions and critiquing peers' work, making abstract ideas tangible. Collaborative redesigns build critique skills while keeping sessions fun and low-pressure, aligning with play-based learning at this age.

What are common misconceptions about media messages for young students?

Foundation learners often think media always tells truth, ignores visuals, or never confuses. Address by pairing clips with discussions where they draw feelings and vote on clarity. These reveal biases gently, using peer input to shift views without direct correction.

How to link media messages to Australian Curriculum standards?

AC9AMAFR01 covers responding to media artworks; use cartoons for feeling descriptions. AC9AMAFE03 targets purposes and meanings; analyse ad intent through group critiques. Activities like station rotations provide evidence of achievement via drawings and explanations.

What simple activities introduce media influence on feelings?

Start with familiar ads or cartoons. Have pairs act out evoked emotions, then draw messages. Extend to creating class posters critiquing clarity. These build from observation to analysis, using 20-40 minute sessions with visuals to suit short attention spans.