Teaching sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

10 minutes

Part A: The importance of The Final Quarter

40 minutes

Part B: Archival documentary techniques

45 minutes

Part C: The opening sequence

5 minutes

Reflection

Learning intentions and success criteria

Students understand...

how technical and symbolic codes are used by the director of The Final Quarter to create powerful meaning for the audience.
understand the definition of archival documentary and the process of selection and omission to construct meaning for the audience.

Students can...

identify different documentary making techniques
consider the various ways mood and meaning are created in archival documentaries
write an analysis based on the conventions of archival documentaries.

Lesson setup

Step 1

Before the lesson, print out enough copies of the Editing Techniques Matching Activity to have one for each group of 3-5 students in your class. Cut out the techniques and definitions individually and place them in envelopes. Each group should have all the techniques and definitions as they will be required to match them together in Part B.

Step 2

Prior to students entering the classroom, print one copy of the Editing Conventions Seed Discussion Posters and stick each page up around the room with enough space between them so students can write on them in pairs or groups of three. You will complete this activity in Part B.

Part A: The importance of The Final Quarter

Step 1

Explain to students that in today’s lesson they will be looking deeper at the documentary, The Final Quarter. Hand out the Student Worksheets and invite students to complete these questions:

How is The Final Quarter unlike other documentaries you have seen?
The Final Quarter was made by Shark Island Productions, an independent film production company. Being independent means they are not owned by a major media company.
They specialise in creating documentaries that educate the public about important social issues. Why might companies like Shark Island Productions be beneficial for the Australian media industry and Australian audiences in general?
Given that Adam Goodes retired in 2015, why do you think Shark Island Productions thought it important to share the Adam Goodes story with audiences four years later? How do you think this film is relevant for Australia today?

Step 2

While students are working, walk around the room and give out sticky notes for the next activity (one between two students) and offer support to students with their answers to the above questions.

Step 3

Invite students to pair up. In their pairs, ask them to discuss their answers to the questions and select one point they consider to be most important. Invite them to write a sentence about the point on their sticky notes.

Step 4

Collect the sticky notes and display them on a wall or board. Read each sticky note so students gain an overview of what the class is thinking about The Final Quarter so far. Keep the sticky notes there so students can refer to them in the reflection at the end of the lesson.

You might like to invite students to discuss the various points and vote for the top three.

Part B: Archival documentary techniques

Step 1

Ask students to create small groups at their tables. They may like to complete the next activity standing up around the tables so ensure the space is set up appropriately. Hand each group an envelope containing the Editing Techniques Matching Activity.

Step 2

Once all groups have an envelope, invite them to open it and lay out the contents of the envelope, text facing upward. Explain to students that they are to match each editing technique with its matching definition. Invite students to begin and allow them a few minutes to complete the activity.

Step 3

Hand out the Editing Vocabulary And Archival Documentary Conventions Factsheet and invite students to read through the Factsheet and compare their answers with the Matching Activity. Allow them to ask any questions they might have.

Step 4

Invite students to share examples from The Final Quarter that match the terms presented in the Factsheet. For example, in The Final Quarter there are sound effects of thunder, kicking a ball and amplified sounds of a football crowd to enhance meaning for the audience at various points in the documentary.

Step 5

Direct students to find the ‘Conventions of Archival Documentaries’ section on the Student Worksheet. Read through each convention as a class and answer any questions the students may have.

Step 6

Ensure you have stuck up the Editing Conventions Seed Discussion Posters, spaced so that students can write on them in small groups or pairs. This should be completed before the lesson for minimal disruption.

Step 7

Show students the Editing Conventions Seed Discussion Posters stuck around the room. Explain to students that they will have one minute in pairs or groups of three to write as many examples from The Final Quarter as they can think of, that applies to each technique. After each minute they will move clockwise to the next sheet and start again. Ask them to try not to repeat answers that other groups have already listed. You might like to take some time to point out the path they will be travelling around the room to get to each Convention.

Step 8

Invite students to move to the pages with markers or pens, ensuring they are spread around evenly and set a timer to one minute. Start the timer and invite students to start writing. At the end of the minute call out “Stop! Please move to the next page and get ready.” Repeat the process until students have exhausted their ideas or they have made their way around the room to each page.

Step 9

Provide students with a few minutes to review the content listed on each page and discuss the process. You might like to read the examples out or assign a few sheets to larger groups for discussion and then share what they noticed with the rest of the class.

Optional: You might like to ask students to complete the 'PMI Chart' (Plus, Minus, Interesting) on the Student Worksheet about the activity and what they noticed about the Archival Conventions.

Part C: The opening sequence

Step 1

Explain to the class that they will be viewing the opening sequence of The Final Quarter (3 mins, 33 secs) and they are to take notes on the Student Worksheet using the ‘Viewing Notes’ table. Remind students to refer back to the ‘Conventions of Archival Documentary’ if they need reminding about what they are.

Say to students:

“When you watch the opening you will notice that the choices made by the director set up the themes of racism and give an overview of the issues and incidents contained in Adam Goodes’ last years as a footballer. Take note of how each convention is used to communicate mood and meaning for the audience. Then write these in your table.”

Go through the table to ensure students understand how to fill it out.

Viewing Notes Table

Convention	Specific example noted	Analytical meaning/mood created for the audience: What do you think the director is trying to convey to the audience?
Archival footage Camera shots (close up, mid-shot, long shot, establishing shot, etc.)
Archival footage Setting
Archival footage Mise en scene
Editing
Music
Graphics/titles
Special editing effects

Step 2

Play the opening of The Final Quarter twice through and allow time in-between and afterwards for students to take notes:

Opening Sequence (https://vimeo.com/378672556/87ffc9857b)

Step 3

After they have finished, ask students to share an example from each row of their Viewing Notes Table.

Step 4

Explain to students that you will now play a video where the director, Ian Darling and editor, Sally Fryer discuss the editing techniques used in The Final Quarter, focusing on the opening sequence. Play this video:

TFQ On the Opening Sequence (https://vimeo.com/390664334/72cd6ee1de)

Note: Some students might find it valuable to re-watch the Opening Sequence at this point.

Step 5

Invite students to respond to the following 'Think Pair Share' questions on the Student Worksheet:

What editing techniques stood out to you?
What surprised you?
What do you want to learn more about?

Invite students to pair with another student to share their responses to the questions. They might like to add notes into the table if anything new comes up from the discussion. Invite students to share their most interesting and surprising points with the class.

Think Pair Share

Think pair share is a collaborative learning strategy in which students work together to solve a problem or answer a question.

Think - students independently think about an issue or question and record their thoughts.
Pair - students work in pairs to discuss their ideas and record new thoughts.
Share - students share their thoughts with the whole group or with other pairs to reach consensus.

Step 6

Ask students to find a new partner to work with. Once students are settled, hand out one copy of the Clip Analysis Worksheet to each pair.

Step 7

In their pairs, invite students to select one of the clips below to view (or you can assign them so all the clips get covered) and fill in the Clip Analysis Worksheet.

Australian of the Year (https://vimeo.com/350234853/7ac647cec1)
Harry O’Brien on Casual Racism (https://vimeo.com/348313037/10d116475f)
Sam Newman = Pride Banner (https://vimeo.com/348313577/f63e1472d0)
Eddie’s King Kong Comment (https://vimeo.com/353514210/8bee5467c9)
Rob Bonnet interview with Ita Buttrose (https://vimeo.com/348313307/bb9e09d54e)
Standing Ovation for Adam (https://vimeo.com/348313979/7375d98de4)
The War Cry Extended (https://vimeo.com/352634304/04c4aa0c38)
Sam Newman - Stan Grant - Adam's retirement (https://vimeo.com/348313371/6e9dc198a2)

Step 8

Once complete, instruct students to write a paragraph together, analysing their chosen clip.

Pair students with lower literacy with students with higher literacy for this task.

Optional: Student may like to share their analyses with the class or another pair and give and receive feedback using these prompts:

I really liked the way you…
Maybe next time you could…

Reflection

Invite students to move to an open area and mark on one side of the space Agree and on one side Disagree (you could print out these signs or use a whiteboard or other indicator). Invite students to stand along the line (or scale) according to what they feel about the following statements:

I think The Final Quarter is a good film
I like the Archival Documentary style
I think Shark Island Productions has created something of value
I enjoyed this lesson
I learned something new today
I still agree with the point I wrote on the sticky note at the start of the lesson.

Differentiated learning

Extension

Students can turn their pair paragraph in Part C into a longer piece of work about the opening of the film. By using the sections on the viewing sheet and writing a paragraph for each element, they could create an analytical essay.
Students could complete an analysis of the last three minutes of The Final Quarter to unpack the ways the opening and closing of the film creates meaning for the audience.

Provisions for Learning Support

Consider pairing weaker students with stronger ones to facilitate peer coaching and learning.
In Part C, students who experience difficulty with analysis can describe what they See, Hear and Think using a Y-chart, rather than completing the analysis. They can write three dot points instead of an analytical paragraph.

Teacher reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

The Final Quarter - A Closer Look

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Summary

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