Icebreaker 4 - Movie Truth
Design Pattern Tags :
Icebreaker 4 - Movie Truth December 2015
Icebreaker 4 - Movie Truth uses a short clip from a movie or Youtube to highlight a topic or subject matter before introducing and unpacking the theory.
Rationale The icebreaker provides an opportunity to get students engaged with the topic and with each other in a face-to-face environment.
Learners/Context Suitable for all courses at the start of the semester or when introducing a new topic in the course.
Alignment The activity stimulates thinking about a topic as a lead-in to exploring the subject matter / theory.
Instructions/Processes Prior to class:
Research an appropriate film clip linked to the subject matter being introduced and that can stimulate student engagement and discussion. For example: “Ben Stein as Economics Teacher in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” video clip may be suitable for introducing topics related to tariffs or as a humorous general introduction to the semester (see Resources/Technology for link).
Develop some questions or issues related to the video to help engage and facilitate discussion with students.
At the beginning of class:
Begin the class by screening the video on the in-class projector via a computer.
Ask students to give their thoughts and views on what they think are the main takeaway points from the video.
Raise an issue, question or problem raised in the video which is linked to the subject matter/theory.
Focus on the connection between the video and the subject matter as a lead-in to the topic that the students will be exploring - ask ‘What next?’, or ‘What is the challenge?’
Conditions/Critical Success Factors Accessing and playing videos (see Resources/Technology).
Resources/ Technology