Title: Advertising dizziness

Lesson plan elaborated by: Katarzyna Maciejak

Topic:

How and to what the advertisement persuades us?

Target group

7th‑grade students of an elementary school.

Core curriculum

1. Literary and cultural education.

2. Receipt of cultural texts. Pupil:

2) organizes information depending on their function in the message;

6) defines the aesthetic values of the cited cultural texts;

7) finds in the texts of contemporary popular culture (eg in films, comics, songs) references to traditional literary and cultural themes.

2. Language education.

2. Differentiation of language. Pupil:

3) knows ways to enrich vocabulary;

4) understands the importance of homonyms;

6) distinguishes the content and scope of the word.

3. Creating statements.

4) Elements of rhetoric. Pupil:

5. functionally uses rhetorical means and understands their impact on the recipient;

8) recognizes and distinguishes the means of persuasion and manipulation in advertising texts, defines their function;

9) recognizes linguistic manipulation and contrasts it with the principles of ethics of expression.

6) Self‑education. Pupil:

7. reliably, with respect for copyrights, uses information;

8) develops the ability to think critically and formulate opinions.

The general purpose of education

Students learn linguistic means of persuasion used especially in the advertising message.

Key competences

• communication in the mother tongue;

• communication in foreign languages;

• learning to learn;

• social and civic competences.

Operational objectives

Student:

• determines the functions of advertising;

• explains what persuasion is;

• recognises and names linguistic means to persuade;

• analyses advertising slogans for language operations;

• creates its own graphics and advertising slogan.

Teaching methods / techniques

• giving: talk;

• practical: exercises concerned;

• programmed: using a computer, using an e‑manual.

Forms of work

• individual activity;

• activity in pairs;

• activity in groups;

• collective activity.

Lesson plan overview (Process)

Introduction

1. The teacher defines the purpose of the course: the students will learn what a persuasion is and how it is used in advertising.

2. The teacher recalls various functions of language and tells that incitement (impressive function) is one of them.

Realization

1. The teacher asks students where advertisements can be found, in what form, what products are advertised most often, who appears in advertisements and what it depends on (the conclusions should concern, among others, the image of a woman/man/child/ elderly person in an advertisement – depending on who it is addressed to).

2. The teacher asks the students to create their own definition of advertisement and discuss it in the classroom. Then, the teacher draws attention to the functions of advertising (persuasion to buy something through attractive form or influencing emotions, among other things).

3. Students look for a definition of the word persuasion in the English dictionary and think about the situations in which it is used.

4. The teacher talks briefly about the history of advertisement and the origin of the word (from Latin advertere – to turn the mind towards).

5. Students do ex. no. 5 – they look at the photo gallery to find out what the advertisements used to look like.

6. The teacher starts a discussion about the linguistic measures used in advertisements, and then the students use flashcards to familiarise themselves with examples of such measures and consider whether any of them is present in the advertisements they remember.

7. The teacher asks the students about the advertising slogans presented as examples in the previous exercise and informs that the advertising slogan is also called a “catchphrase”. Students do a task concerning persuasion measures in advertising slogans and social campaigns.

8. The teacher points out that not all advertisements are used to encourage the purchase of goods and services – some of them are social campaigns promoting important ideas or attitudes. The teacher asks the students to give examples of social campaigns and what they think about their effectiveness.

9. Students watch graphics from the campaign promoting reading and wonder what are the word‑plays used in them. Then, the students, working in groups, create their own graphics of this type.

Summary

1. The teacher distributes questionnaires to the students to evaluate their own work.

2. Next, the teacher sums up the lesson by asking questions:

• What language means are used in advertising?

• How else do we call language means that are used to get someone to something?

• What are the functions of advertising?

Homework

Think about what social attitude or important idea you would like to promote and create an advertising slogan for it.

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

Advertising dizziness

Words can inform but they can also influence our mind and emotions. In ancient times the art of rhetoric was born, it is the art of convincing people with the help of arguments. Great philosophers (such as Aristotle, Quintilian, Cicero) proved in their speeches that words can not only impress, charm or create dream world (fictional, made of words), but they also can persuade people to some action (i.e.: changing opinion or choosing beautiful or attractive things). All those features are characteristic for statements used by the broadcaster to persuade or to convince the recipient. Such effect is achieved by the persuasive and manipulative function of language. Their effects can be found in advertising, propaganda (or political) and media texts. During this lesson you will learn about persuasion – the art of persuading by using language, and about advertisements – word‑picture texts based on persuasion.

Where you can find adverts in your surrounding? In what form? What products are advertised most often? Who appears in adverts and commercials and what does it depend on?

Advertises are not new invention – their history is connected with the history of trade, when the merchants on the main squares or marketplaces “shouted out” the advantages of goods they sell. The English word “advertisement” comes from Old French “avertir „ meaning: “to make aware”, while in Polish the word “reklama” stems form Latin verb clamo, clamare, that means “to shout”.

To convince the recipient to purchase a product or service, different linguistic measures are used. What linguistic techniques can you notice in the adverts you know. How are the products described? How is the potential client addressed?

Does any slogan seem ingenious? What slogans do you remember from the adverts you know? Why these? Slogans are the most important element of every advertising text. They should be short and easy to remember.

What interesting means of persuasion can you notice in the quoted slogans? Write your answers below.

As you may notice in the previous exercise – not all advertisements persuade people to purchase goods or services. Some campaigns were created to promote important ideas and attitudes.

Do you know any public campaigns? What do you think about their effectiveness? What ideas should be promoted more often?