Theme:
WHERE WE ARE IN PLACE AND TIME /

PYP PLANNER

Unit Title:
Popular culture- How it changes /
Focus:
NZC; SOCIAL SCIENCE- Continuity&Change
Level: NZC 3-4 (Year 7/8) / Proposed duration:
6/7 Weeks
Teacher(s): Team
Stage 6: To what extent did we achieve our purpose?
Teacher Reflection:
Student reflection:
(record the students’ reaction to the unit)
Stage 2: What resources will we use?
People, places, audio-visual materials, related literature, music, art, computer software etc.
Books:
‘Bootleg’ Class novel- resisting pressure- following beliefs / Websites:
Videos:
Field Trips:
Posters:
Teacher Resource Books:
Stage 1: What is our purpose?
A concise description of the central idea to be addressed and the scope of the inquiry
a) Central idea: Popular culture helps identify the values of each generation and is a symbol of change.
b) An inquiry into:
- the scope and nature of pop-culture
- how popular culture influences students’ lives (and of other generations)
- the transient and cyclical nature of pop culture

Stage 3: What do we want to learn?

The key questions which will drive the inquiry.

Form
What is it like?
Function
How does it work?
Causation
Why is it the way it is?
Change
How does it change? / 1.
Connection
How is it connected to other things? / 2.
Perspective
What are the points of view?
Responsibility
What is our responsibility?
Reflection
How do we know?
Related Concepts; media, peer-pressure, culture
Teacher Questions:
1.  What makes/ constitutes/ shapes ‘Popular Culture’?
2.  How does popular culture influence people’s lives?
3.  How is pop culture related to status?
4.  What’s the difference between NZ pop culture and ‘Kiwiana’?
Student Inquiry:
Some examples of questions that have been asked by students include:
1. 
Stage 4: How best will we learn?
Teacher and/or student designed activities which will address the student inquiry
Teacher provides context for inquiry by:
-Jingle quiz (extracts from TV and radio ads)
-Class collection and display of what they consider to be pop culture
-Grafitti board of popular sayings/ catchphrases
-Out of fashion- class collection and sharing of items from bedrooms which are no longer used
-Personal recounts- times when students have felt ‘left out’ or didn’t belong
B. Leading / facilitating open activities:
-Design/research/create a time capsule which represents the current popular culture, to be opened in 1yr, 5 yrs… Justify choices for the items- limit items in size or number
-Look at/ study current advertising and the affect it has on them
-Prepare some online surveys to gather information about how popular culture has changed; target family members or community
-Design questions/ interview a visitor about advertising- use parents to locate and invite suitable person
-Playground observation- observe peers at play and try to identify actions and behaviours which may reflect ‘pop culture’ e.g. using American accents, playfighting, hairstyles, sports being played
-Perform a case study; Look in depth at a modern TV programme and how it portrays young people from 2009. Compare with another case study from another era.
-As above- focus on adverts
-Visits? Museum tracing changes in popular culture? (Auckland Museum- toys?)
-Pictoral timeline; making a timeline of popular culture through 20th/ 21st century around their learning environment and as an online record
-Revisit advertisements/case studies in light of further learning- can students now identify conscious changes/ actions by TV producers to reflect pop culture?
-Comparisons; Compare their lives to the lives portrayed through television and advertising looking for similarities and differences
-Research groups; Collaborative groups are given/ select an element of modern/ historical popular culture to research- look at imagery and messages relating to values and beliefs of modern popular culture in fields of music, clothes, film, reading material, pastimes
-Research groups; Collaborative groups inquiring how a current aspect of popular culture is being marketed; movie, gadget, service
ACTION
-Put learning into action and review/ rebrand/ readvertise a school service- canteen, school council, media crew, radio station
-Dare to be different- Student discussions about how they have dared to be different and resist peer and external pressure to do something or behave in a certain fashion- perform this sharing on a regular basis following the unit- as personal goals?
Stage 5: How will we know what we have learned?
The strategies which will be used to assess learning.
Formative assessment:
Summative assessment:
Student self-assessment:
How will we take action?
How the students will demonstrate their ability to choose, act and reflect.
·  Independent inquiry; Investigate and find out about 2/3/4 elements of popular culture from a different generation/ culture- how is it similar or different?
·  Design a survey which reflects the link between popular culture the values/beliefs of each generation- test generalisations about pop culture
·  Investigate how popular culture is different in various countries- Which countries are most aligned to NZ in popular culture?
·  Hold a grandparents’ day to celebrate and build bridges, to share popular culture discussions