Vol. 79 🕵️ Helping Students Become Analysis Experts

By now, you’ve probably read one or two of our stories and thought, I want to try that in my class! We usually spotlight the results of a classroom project, but today, we’re taking a step back to focus on how to start one—with analysis. 

Whether students are creating videos, recording podcasts, designing board games, or tackling another big project, beginning with real-world examples and structured group discussion sets the stage for deeper learning.

Why Analysis Matters

Before jumping into creation, students need to understand what makes a strong piece of work. Analyzing examples—whether movie trailers, podcasts, or board games—helps them recognize patterns, evaluate effectiveness, and apply those insights to their own projects.

🔍 Key Analyzing Skills Across Subjects:

• ELA 5: Recognize how literary elements, techniques, and devices enhance meaning in texts
• ELA 6: Recognize and appreciate how different features, forms, and genres of texts reflect various purposes, audiences, and messages.
• ELA 6-7: Understand how literary elements, techniques, and devices enhance and shape meaning
• ELA 6-7: Recognize an increasing range of text structures and how they contribute to meaning
• Science 5: Make observations in familiar or unfamiliar contexts
• Science 6-7: Make predictions about the findings of their inquiry
• ADST 6-7: Identify and evaluate the skills and skill levels needed, individually or as a group, in relation to a specific task, and develop them as needed

🎥 Analyzing Movie Trailers 

By Dylan and Carlo

In Michael’s Grade 5 class, we kicked off with a comparative analysis of two movie trailers for Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory—one from 1971 and one from the remastered 2021 HD version. Students worked through a See, Know, Wonder, Feel worksheet as they watched each trailer.

Michael did an incredible job allowing the class time (an hour!) to process and discuss. Students noticed how the modern trailer used "tingly" music that built to a crescendo, creating more drama.

One student remarked, "It feels like they're trying to make me excited even before anything happens!" Another group pointed out that "lots of modern trailers follow the same pattern," leading to a discussion on trends in media.

The class ended by listing key elements of a great trailer, insights they would later use to create their own. This included things like: 

• Use music to increase emotion
• Use music that matches the tone of the movie
• Introduce the main character and supporting characters strategically
• Use a voice over if you need to explain more
• Summarize the movie with clips from different parts of the story. 

The key takeaway? Given enough time to think critically, students naturally generate fantastic observations!

🎙️ Analyzing Podcasts

By Dylan

Similarly to visual media analysis, we've explored how podcasts work by breaking down real-world examples and practicing audio recording techniques across multiple classrooms.

For example, in Janelle’s class, we kicked off the Ancient Civilizations Podcasting Project with a deep dive into an episode of But Why? - Where Does the Sky End?. We selected this episode specifically because it demonstrates excellent use of music, sound effects, and how the host skillfully summarizes and explains complex concepts—all skills we want our students to develop.

In this class, we listened to chunks of the podcast and then paused for discussion. I prompted the class with open ended questions like:

• What did you hear?
• How would you describe the hosts voice?
• What is the music telling you about the story?
• How did the host engage listeners with their Podcast?

Later, we analyzed a podcast made by another student studying Ancient Civilizations. One student identified the noise in the background of the podcast being a distraction that disrupted their listening experience. Quickly, another student responded and argued that the background noise of classroom sounded like a town square and actually immersed her in the podcast even more. Like it was being recorded amongst the people of Ancient Rome.

I loved hearing the different takes and encouraged the class to refer to this discussion when recording their own podcasts.

🎲 Analyzing Board Games

By Jen

During a recent afternoon in Patricia's Grade 7 class, students prepared to create their own board games by first analyzing existing ones.

Patricia had set up stations with a variety of games, including Monopoly, The Game of Life, and Clue for the students to rotate through in groups. Their task was to break down the rules, themes, and objectives of each game.

Students collaboratively created a list of qualities that make a good board game, which they'll then apply to creating their own civilization-themed games.

We challenged the students to really differentiate the structure of the different games, and how obvious the themes were in each game.

"How does Costco Monopoly differ from normal Monopoly?" I asked. This comparison sparked lively debate, with one student noting, "The themed versions tell a story that the original doesn't." These insights were crucial since their upcoming board games would be based on different civilizations, and we wanted them to incorporate meaningful thematic elements beyond just reskinning existing games.

Whether analyzing trailers, podcasts, or board games, the process follows the same powerful pattern: observe examples, identify elements that work, and apply those insights to original creations. By dedicating sufficient time to this critical first step, we've seen students develop stronger critical thinking skills and produce more thoughtful, creative projects.

🤨 Why So Serious?