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High School
South Africa, Part II

 

 

Photojournalism
with Greg Marinovich

The videos for this chapter contain images that some may find upsetting. We recommend you view these materials before sharing them with your students.

Middle Elementary

South Africa, Part II has been developed for our older students. Should you decide to use this lesson, you will need to access this chapter via the Middle School or High School entry points.
Middle School
and
High School

Objective: These lessons are designed to demonstrate the power of images. Through these lessons, students will learn how a story can be told through pictures and how photography can evoke an emotion.

Lesson I: Begin by viewing all four video segments of ‘Photojournalism’ with Greg Marinovich. Have students pay particular attention to the segment entitled ‘The Power of Pictures.’ After viewing, engage the class in a discussion about the language of photographs and what it means to capture a moment.

Then, provide a unique picture to each student in the class. Pose some of the following questions to the class and have them write down their initial impressions of their photo:

  • Who is the subject of the picture?
  • What are they doing?
  • Why are they doing that?
  • Where are they?
  • Why are they there?
  • What might have happened just before or after the picture was taken?
  • How does the picture make you feel?
Written Assignment: Have students write a 1 to 2 page story based on their photo. Learners should address the questions posed in class and complete the story using their imagination. As much as possible, educators should refrain from providing the context or backstory for the photos, and encourage learners to construct their own explanations.

Educator Notes: Prior to the lesson, collect enough editorial photographs from newspapers and magazines for each student in the class. Remove associated stories from the images so that students focus on the images alone to create their stories.

Lesson 2: For this lesson students will find an image that conveys an emotion or a theme. As a class, begin by discussing what qualities make photography an effective story-telling tool.

In-Class Activity: Have the class work in small groups of 3 to 4 students. Assign each group a theme, i.e. hope, suffering, courage, change, defeat, and tradition. Have each student choose a picture from a magazine or newspaper that describes the group’s assigned theme/emotion.

Once each student has selected a picture, have the groups discuss their selections and make a collaborative decision as to which picture best fits their theme. Then, have each group share their picture and theme/emotion with the class.  Each group should explain a few specific elements or style choices used in their picture that fit to their chosen theme.  

Educator Notes: Prior to this lesson, collect enough magazines and newspapers so that there is enough source material for students.
 
Student Assessment: After completing these lessons, students should be able to understand the power and importance of images in media, and how pictures differ from narrative descriptions in both positive and negative ways.

Curriculum Connections: Arts Education, English, Social Studies

*Each month, ProjectExplorer will add new photos, films, and update South Africa, Part II. In the meantime, there is plenty to explore in South Africa, Part I and Shakespeare’s England.