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Analyzing advertising

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Age group

Students ages 10 and 11

When

Anytime

Time required

7 to 10 hours

Broad areas of learning

Environment and consumption

Activity summary

Students learn to recognize advertisements and differentiate between ads and informational messages. They will create, analyze and judge their own ads and those of others students.

Financial and cooperative skills

  • Analyzing the influence of advertising
  • Prioritizing needs and want
  • Identifying cooperative values

Subject-specific competencies

Subject

Competency

Progressions of learning

English
Language Arts

To use language to communicate and learn (QEP 2011)

Vocabulary:

  • Uses literal and figurative language in a variety of ways (QEP 2011)

  • Uses vocabulary and/or terminology related to the type of writing (QEP 2011)

Selection of prosodic elements:

  • Rhythm and cadence

  • Intonation

 

Subject-specific competencies

Subject

Competency

Visual arts

Ethics and religious culture

Science and technology – The material world

To produce individual works in the visual arts (QEP 2011)

Engages in dialogue (QEP 2011)

To make the most of scientific and technological tools, objects, and procedures (QEP 2011)

Cross-curricular competencies

Uses creativity (QEP 2011)

Preparation

Students differentiate between needs and wants and recognize advertisements.

 

Time required

30 minutes

Task 1

Recognizing advertisements

Task 1 objective

By the end of this task, students will be able to differentiate between advertising and objective information.

Instructions

  • Lead a discussion about advertising.
  • Ask students to give examples of advertising and information they see in the media (television, magazines, Internet, etc.).

Exemples de questions :

  • What is advertising?
  • How do you recognize an advertisement?

Presence of a product or brand for sale. In addition to providing information, advertising seeks to entice consumers.

Ask students to bring in magazines.

 

Time required

45 minutes

Task 2

Discussing the influence of advertising

Task 2 objective

By the end of this task, students will be able to differentiate between needs and wants.

Instructions

  • Show students an ad from which you’ve removed the logo and company name1.
  • Ask students to describe the difference between needs and wants and give examples of each. Write the information on the board or on a big sheet of paper.
  • Ask students what makes them buy things that are wants, over needs. (Advertising often targets our wants.)
  • Ask students to give examples of advertisements that entice people to buy things they don’t really need. Ask them to provide examples for themselves, their parents and their peers, if they can.

Teacher's notes

Examples of questions to ask:

  • Would you buy the product in the ad? Why or why not?
  • Which arguments were convincing?
  • Is this product necessary? Why or why not?

These questions aim to help students learn the difference between needs and wants, without asking the question directly.

1. In Quebec, the Consumer Protection Act prohibits commercial advertising that targets children under the age of 13. To learn more, see the Office de la protection du consommateur website.

Development

Students learn to recognize the strategies used to entice consumers.

 

Time required

60 minutes

Teaching material

Marketing Strategies [PDF] - 142 Ko

Task 1

Advertising strategies

Task 1 objective

By the end of this task, students will recognize several strategies used in advertising to influence consumers.

Instructions

  • Ask students what they know about advertising strategies. Write down their responses.
  • Ask them to identify the advertising strategies used on the poster.
  • Hand out or project the document, Marketing Strategies. Read each strategy with students and ask them to provide examples for each one.
  • How do advertisers try to entice consumers to buy their products? What arguments do they use? Suggest that students refer to ads they’ve seen on TV, on posters or in magazines.
  • Advertising strategies: promises, celebrity or notoriety (endorsements), information and price.

 

Time required

45 minutes

Teaching material

Advertising [VIDEO]
Marketing Strategies [PDF] - 142 Ko

Task 2

Analyzing ads

Task 2 objective

By the end of this task, students will be able to identify advertising strategies.

Instructions

  • Watch the false advertising video with students.
  • Ask them to fill out the advertising analysis grid included in the reference document, Marketing Strategies.
  • Compile the answers during a group discussion.
  • Watch the video again. Direct their attention to the advertising strategies as they watch.

 

Time required

3 to 6 hours, depending on tasks selected

Teaching material

A Winning Ad [PDF] - 59 Ko
Marketing Strategies [PDF] - 142 Ko
Oral Communication Evaluation Grid [PDF] - 49 Ko

Task 3

Creating an ad

Task 3 objective

By the end of this task, students will be able to use advertising strategies to entice consumers to buy a product.

Instructions

  • Ask students to create an advertisement for a fictional product.
  • Create teams of 2 to 4 students.
  • Hand out the A Winning Ad sheet.
  • Have students prepare their product and ad.
  • Film or present the ads to the group.

Teacher's notes

  • The product must be illustrated or made with recycled material. The time allotted to create the product will affect the total time for the task. The product may be created at home to limit the class time allotted for the project.
  • Add the sciences to the assignment: have students suggest a theme for their product. For example, energy transformation (recognizing the transformation of energy from one form to another in several appliances).
  • Suggest that students refer to the reference document, Marketing Strategies that was studied in class.
  • Use the oral communication evaluation grid, and let students know they will be evaluated. During the preparation phase, tell students what elements will be evaluated so they can begin to practice their skills. An interesting way to use technology and communication tools is to ask that students film themselves.

Evaluation

Students learn to use judgment when presented their ad..

 

Time required

60 minutes

Teaching material

A Winning Ad Score Chart [PDF] - 55 Ko

Task 1

Thinking about advertising

Task 1 objective

By the end of this task, you’ll be able to evaluate whether or not students have a developed critical eye for advertising.

Instructions

  • Use the A Winning Ad Score Chart and watch popular ads with the group.
  • Every student should fill out an analysis grid for each ad viewed.
  • Together, talk about the ads, strategies and the students’ experiences.