This document provides guidance for middle school students to produce a public service announcement (PSA) about an important teen health topic. Students will research their topic, create a storyboard, film and edit a 30-60 second PSA communicating key information and resources, and publish it online. The PSA will be assessed based on conveying the message effectively within time limits, including credits and references for further information, and demonstrating creativity, collaboration, research, critical thinking and problem solving skills.

1. Title: Producing a Public Service Announcement
Author: Ken Shelton
Grade Levels: Middle School
Big Idea: Teen Health
Essential Question
How can I effectively decipher and communicate important information and dangers of a teen
health topic?
The Challenge
To produce a 30-60 second public service announcement about a teen health topic that is
important to me.
Guiding Questions
What is my topic? Options include, but are not limited to the following:
○ Drugs
○ Gangs
○ Pregnancy
○ Depression
○ Alcohol
○ Bullying
○ Cyber Safety
Why is it important to teens?
What is the best way to communicate in “our” language?
What information is most important about my topic?
Where can I get reliable information about my topic?
Objectives
1. Effectively and efficiently research your topic using the tools mentioned below
2. Through appropriate planning and production team discussions, evaluate which
information is most important to include in your final PSA based upon your target
audience
3. Create a high quality storyboard so that other groups could produce your PSA if
necessary
4. Evaluate the difference between a commercial and a Public Service Announcement
Guiding Activities
1. Once you have your topic brainstorm with your production group keywords you

2. associate with that topic. For example, if you chose depression, some keywords that
you may include in your search or to narrow your search results with yolink are: sad,
sadness, loneliness, etc.
2. Execute research online
1. Google
2. Yahoo
3. Creative Commons
4. Sweet Search
○ Be sure to make use of the yolink add-on to bookmark useful sites
to our Diigo account and to add notes to your Google Doc (planning)
3. Find/Contact organizations that focus on my topic
4. Interview friends and classmates
5. Interview teachers/adults
Solution/Action
Produce, film, edit, and publish a 30-60 second public service announcement about your topic.
Provide real, meaningful information in the Public Service Announcement along with resources
for others to access for more information or help. Publish your PSA to YouTube, Vimeo,
iTunes, Google video within our domain, or another video sharing site
Assessment
○ Your final PSA is within the allotted time frame
○ Your storyboard visually reflects your script and treatment
○ You have made meaningful and appropriate edits to enhance your message
○ You have included opening and ending credits
○ You have included references to sites your viewers can go to for more information
○ You have followed the parameters of the ISTE NETS-S below
○ You have assigned a Creative Commons license to your project
NETS Standards (NETS-S) and Performance Indicators for Students
1. Creativity and Innovation
Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop
innovative products and processes using technology.
Students:
a. Apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, product, or processes.
b. Create original works as a means of personal or group expression.
d. Identify trends and forecast possibilities.
2. Communication and Collaboration
Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work
collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and
contribute to the learning of others.
Students:
a. Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a

3. variety of digital environments and media.
b. Communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a
variety of media and formats.
d. Contribute to project teams to produce original works or solve problems.
3. Research and Information Fluency
Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information.
Students:
a. Plan strategies to guide inquiry.
b. Locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use
information from a variety of sources and media.
c. Evaluate and select information sources and digital tools based on the
appropriateness to specific tasks.
d. Process data and report results.
4. Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making
Students use critical thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage
projects, solve problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate tools
and resources.
Students:
a. Identify and define authentic problems and significant questions for
investigation.
b. Plan and manage activities to develop a solution or complete a project.
c. Collect and analyze data to identify solutions and/or make informal decisions.
d. Use multiple processes and diverse perspectives to explore alternative solutions.
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/