Objective:
The student will be able to create a 30-second television commercial advertisement for a Tetra fish food product.
Materials Needed:
*If the teacher does not have access to a camcorder or VCR, the students could create a print advertisement for the newspaper.
Activity:
Ask students to name some of their favorite television commercials. If possible, the teacher could tape some TV commercials and show them to the class. After viewing the commercials or discussing favorite commercials, ask:
What product is the ad attempting to sell?
What are some sales techniques that the ad uses to appeal to the viewer?
Does the ad create a desire to buy?
What type of audience is the ad trying to reach? (Children, seniors, working men and women, sports enthusiasts, etc.)
Do you think that the ad accomplishes its goal?
If any of the students has a parent working in the advertising or marketing profession, extend an invitation to talk to the class about the "ABCs" of advertising.
Divide the students into pairs. Each pair is to design a 30-second commercial for one of Tetra's fish food products. The advertisement must include a slogan and a creative reason to purchase the product. Students are strongly encouraged to think "out of the box" for this lesson: music, illustrations, zany costumes, and props are allowed if students can access everything easily. Give students several days to prepare, practice and polish the commercial.
Videotape each pair's commercial. Invite the parents in for a TV premiere and play all of the commercials on the VCR as parents eat a snack (goldfish crackers!) and watch. Give parents a brief rating sheet so that the ad's slogan, message and creativity can be scored on a 1-10 scale. At the conclusion of the viewing, parents are to vote on the commercial that does the best job of selling the product. (Voting is not mandatory; be sure to praise all of the students on their efforts.)
Result:
Send a copy of the videotape to Sara Hunt at Aquademics™ Headquarters, 4121 Cox Road, Ste. 107, Glen Allen, VA 23060. Make a notation of the number of students in the class, and everyone will receive a special "fishy" prize from Tetra.
