1920s Radio Show

1920s Radio Show Project Introduction Welcome to the Roaring Twenties. In groups of 3, you are going to be producing your own radio show. Radio broadcasts really started to become popular in the 1920s. Your task as a group is to plan, develop, and execute an original, creative, informative, accurate, and entertaining radio show. Your group has full creative control over your topic. You just have to meet the minimum requirements (see rubric for more detailed requirements): 1. You must discuss either a historical event (for example, the Stock Market Crash of 1929), a movement (such as women's suffrage or prohibition), a person (such as F. Scott Fitzgerald or W. E. B. DuBois), a piece of art or literature (for example, a review of Ernest Hemmingway's story The Old Man and the Sea or of music by Duke Ellington), or an invention/innovation (such as the automobile). 2. Your radio show must be historically accurate. 3. Your radio show must be at least 15 minutes in length. Possible ideas for setting up your show. You do not need to use these ideas; they are here to help get you started. 1. A talk show where one group member can interview two important figures from the time period, such as two politicians, musicians, authors, etc... 2. You can do a “live” news show where you update the audience on something that is going on right now. 3. You can do an informative broadcast on an important subject from the time period. 4. Do a documentary on a particular topic, such as the Harlem Renaissance or the rise of the Speakeasy. 5. Write a screenplay or story about a historical topic that you act out. Remember, before TV, families listened to stories and plays on the radio. 6. Bonus: You can write a commercial for a product available in the 1920s to include in the middle of your radio show. Steps Tuesday, December 8th: 1. Meet with your group. Reread the directions out loud and make sure that everyone understands them. First, have your group decide on who is going to be which role and then write their name on the lines below. The Recorder/Secretary’s main role is to take notes on all conversations and research so that there is a record for everyone to stay informed about the project. The Planner/Editor’s main role is to come up with a feasible outline and plan for both the radio show itself and how the group will complete it. The Lead Researcher’s main role is to find good sources of information for the group to use when writing and planning the radio show, and to put together the Works Cited Page. All members should help in every part, but everyone has the job that they are most in charge of. a. Recorder/Secretary: b. Planner/Editor: c. Lead Researcher: d. Assistant Researcher (only if there is a group of 4): 2. After you have your roles and your topic, figure out how you want to setup your radio show (interview, talk show, news broadcast, etc…) – this is the planner – and get as much of the research done as possible – this is the lead researcher. The recorder should take notes on the plan and the research, and act as a liaison keeping the planner and the researcher updated on

each other’s progress. Wednesday, December 9th: 1. Finish and organize any research that was not done on Tuesday. The lead researcher should also create the Works Cited page. http://www.easybib.com can help you with this. 2. Finalize the format for the radio show itself. 3. Together, under the planner’s leadership, using the lead researcher’s research and the recorder’s notes, figure out who is going to play which parts during the radio show and write the script. 4. If you finish, ask for a microphone and a laptop. Sit in one of the rooms in the library or far enough away from everyone that you do not hear other people in your radio show. Open the program called Audacity. You will use this to record your radio show. When you are done, ask Mr. Bedell to show you how to save it as an mp3 file (the same kind you use on your iPod). Then, either turn it into Mr. Bedell’s dropbox or email it to [email protected]. He will turn it into a podcast that people can download and either listen to or put on an mp3 player/iPod. You can listen to your radio show at http://wchsradio.wikispaces.com. Thursday, December 10th: 1. Finish any work that you did not finish from Tuesday and Wednesday. 2. If you finish, ask for a microphone and a laptop. Sit in one of the rooms in the library or far enough away from everyone that you do not hear other people in your radio show. Open the program called Audacity. You will use this to record your radio show. When you are done, ask Mr. Bedell to show you how to save it as an mp3 file (the same kind you use on your iPod). Then, either turn it into Mr. Bedell’s dropbox or email it to [email protected]. He will turn it into a podcast that people can download and either listen to or put on an mp3 player/iPod. You can listen to your radio show at http://wchsradio.wikispaces.com. 3. The projects need to be turned into Mr. Bedell no later than the end of the school day on Friday, December 11th. That way, Mr. Davis can grade them and you can use each other’s radio shows to help study for your midterm exam. How to Use Audactity 1. Open Audacity from the Start Menu.

2. Click the red circle to start recording. If you need to pause during the show, press the blue parallel lines, then press the red circle again to record. Press the yellow square when you are done. You can press the green triangle to play back your recording.

3. When you finish, click File, Save As. Click ok when the dialog box pops up.

4. Click on My Computer, then double-click on your firstname.lastname.

5. Save it as Radioshow-LastName-Lastname-Lastname. For example, if I was working with Mrs. Tabb and Mr. Davis, I would save it as Radioshow-Bedell-Tabb-Davis.aup. This way, the teacher knows exactly who did the work and what they did. You saved it so you can still edit and change it. If you are completely finished, proceed to the next step. 6. Call Mr. Bedell over and he will save it as an mp3 file for you. 7. Turn in the Works Cited page and the radio show mp3 file to Mr. Bedell’s dropbox. 8. Mr. Bedell will turn the mp3 file into a podcast that you can listen to on http://wchsradio.wikispaces.com. Rubric 1 The radio show mainly consisted of reading notes or there was little evidence of a creative format.

3 There was definitely a creative format, but it sometimes distracted from understanding the topic.

Historical Accuracy (30 points)

There were several errors that directly interfered with the listener’s understanding of the content.

Performance (10 points)

The performance was poorly planned and

There were 1-2 minor errors in historical accuracy that did not really detract from understanding the main points about the content. Planning and forethought were

Creativity (20 points)

5 The format was very original and it also helped the listener to both understand the content and enjoy the show. There were no errors in historical accuracy.

The performance was obviously well-

executed. Performers spoke too quickly/slowly, were difficult to understand, and/or did not know what to say at times.

Role Completion (10 points) – This will be unique for every person.

Teamwork (10 points) - Judged by observation, group comments, and final product.

Timeliness (5 point)

Works Cited Page (15 points)

You did not complete some of the responsibilities of your role as explained in the directions and that negatively influenced your fellow group members and resulted in a poorer project The group worked poorly together and it resulted in not getting the project done on time or in turning in a sub-standard project.

The radio show was more than 1 minute short of the 15 minute deadline. The Works Cited page had only 1 source or was not turned it.

evident, but there were errors in the final product such as unplanned pauses, miscues, confusion of parts, or difficult to understand speech.

rehearsed and planned. Performers rarely stuttered or had unplanned pauses. The performers articulated their words well, kept a reasonable pace, and were easy to understand. You individually You individually completed all aspects of completed all aspects of your role as explained your role as explained in the directions, but in the directions and did not try to help your went above and beyond other group members to help your group much with their roles. members with their needs. The group had some difficulties working together, either in getting everything prepared (planning, research, etc…) or in the execution of the broadcast. However, the group still managed to turn in a competent project on time. The radio show was no more than 1 minute short of the 15 minute requirement. The Works Cited page was correctly formatter and listed at least 2 sources. There may have been some errors in formatting.

The group worked well together. Each person fulfilled his or her role on time. The project was turned in on time and reflected the contributions of each member.

The radio show was at least 15 minutes long. The Works Cited page was correctly formatted and used at least 3 sources.