Getting started with media projects
Students explore how videos, podcasts, animations, and digital images are made. They try out tools and start small projects, learning what makes a media piece grab someone's attention.
What does a student learn in
This is the year media projects start carrying real ideas. Students plan videos, audio pieces, or digital images around a message they want an audience to feel, then revise based on feedback. They also start asking why a piece works, looking at how music, images, and timing shape meaning. By spring, students can plan, shoot or record, edit, and share a short media project that gets a clear idea across.
- Video and audio projects
- Planning and storyboarding
- Editing
- Giving and using feedback
- Audience and message
Year at a glance
How the year usually goes. Every school and district set their own curriculum, so treat this as a guide, not official pacing.
- 1
- 2
Planning and building a project
Students move from idea to plan. They sketch storyboards, write short scripts, and organize the pieces they need before filming or recording, so the final piece has a clear point.
- 3
Editing and shaping the message
Students work on the craft. They cut clips, adjust sound, choose images, and revise their work so a viewer or listener understands what they meant to say.
- 4
Looking at media with a sharper eye
Students study ads, films, and posts from different times and places. They notice the choices creators made and talk about why those choices work, then bring what they learn back into their own projects.
- 5
Sharing finished work
Students prepare a project for a real audience. They pick what to show, present it, and reflect on how it landed with viewers and what they would do differently next time.
Mastery Learning Standards
The required skills a student should display by the end of Grade 6.
Connecting
Connecting
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Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art
Students connect what they already know and what they've lived through to the media art they make. Personal experience shapes the choices behind every image, sound, or story they create.
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Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural
Students look at a piece of media art and explain how the time period, culture, or world events around it shaped what the artist made and why it matters.
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art | Students connect what they already know and what they've lived through to the media art they make. Personal experience shapes the choices behind every image, sound, or story they create. | MA:Cn10.6 |
| Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural | Students look at a piece of media art and explain how the time period, culture, or world events around it shaped what the artist made and why it matters. | MA:Cn11.6 |
Creating
Creating
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Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work
Students brainstorm original ideas for media projects, like short videos, digital images, or audio clips, and start shaping those ideas into a plan before any creating begins.
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Organize and develop artistic ideas and work
Students plan and refine a media art project by making decisions about how images, sound, or text work together to express an idea.
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Refine and complete artistic work
Students revisit a media art piece, fix what isn't working, and bring it to a finished state using feedback and their own judgment about what makes it effective.
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work | Students brainstorm original ideas for media projects, like short videos, digital images, or audio clips, and start shaping those ideas into a plan before any creating begins. | MA:Cr1.6 |
| Organize and develop artistic ideas and work | Students plan and refine a media art project by making decisions about how images, sound, or text work together to express an idea. | MA:Cr2.6 |
| Refine and complete artistic work | Students revisit a media art piece, fix what isn't working, and bring it to a finished state using feedback and their own judgment about what makes it effective. | MA:Cr3.6 |
Performing/Presenting/Producing
Performing/Presenting/Producing
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Analyze, interpret, and select artistic work for presentation
Students review a collection of media work, such as videos, photos, or digital projects, and decide which pieces are strong enough to share with an audience. They explain why each choice fits the goal of the presentation.
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Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation
Students practice and improve their media project before sharing it with an audience. That means reviewing the work, fixing weak spots, and making deliberate choices about how the final piece looks, sounds, or plays.
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Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work
Students choose how to share a finished media piece so the audience understands what it means. The format, setting, and sequence all shape how the work lands.
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Analyze, interpret, and select artistic work for presentation | Students review a collection of media work, such as videos, photos, or digital projects, and decide which pieces are strong enough to share with an audience. They explain why each choice fits the goal of the presentation. | MA:Pr4.6 |
| Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation | Students practice and improve their media project before sharing it with an audience. That means reviewing the work, fixing weak spots, and making deliberate choices about how the final piece looks, sounds, or plays. | MA:Pr5.6 |
| Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work | Students choose how to share a finished media piece so the audience understands what it means. The format, setting, and sequence all shape how the work lands. | MA:Pr6.6 |
Responding
Responding
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Perceive and analyze artistic work
Students look closely at a media piece and explain what choices the creator made, such as camera angles, music, or text, and why those choices shape how the audience responds.
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Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work
Students examine a media artwork, such as a short film or digital image, and explain what the creator was trying to say and why specific choices of image, sound, or text produce that effect.
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Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work
Students judge a piece of media art by using a clear set of criteria, explaining why it works or falls short. They back up their opinion with specific details from the work itself.
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Perceive and analyze artistic work | Students look closely at a media piece and explain what choices the creator made, such as camera angles, music, or text, and why those choices shape how the audience responds. | MA:Re7.6 |
| Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work | Students examine a media artwork, such as a short film or digital image, and explain what the creator was trying to say and why specific choices of image, sound, or text produce that effect. | MA:Re8.6 |
| Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work | Students judge a piece of media art by using a clear set of criteria, explaining why it works or falls short. They back up their opinion with specific details from the work itself. | MA:Re9.6 |
Common Questions
What is media arts at this age?
Media arts means making things like short videos, podcasts, animations, photo projects, and digital art. Students learn to plan a piece, put it together with tools on a computer or phone, and share it with an audience.
What does a finished project look like by the end of the year?
By spring, students should be able to take an idea from a rough sketch or storyboard to a finished short piece, like a 60-second video or a podcast clip. The piece should have a clear point and show that students made real edits along the way.
How can families help at home without any special software?
A phone camera and a free editing app are plenty. Ask students to plan a short clip before they record, watch it back, and change one thing to make it better. Talking about ads, songs, and videos at dinner also counts.
How should the year be sequenced?
Start with short, low-stakes projects that build one skill at a time, such as framing a shot or trimming audio. Move into pieces that combine skills, then end with a longer project where students plan, draft, revise, and present a finished work to an audience.
Which skills usually need the most reteaching?
Planning and revising. Sixth graders often want to record once and call it done. Building in storyboards, rough cuts, and a peer feedback step pays off more than teaching new tools.
How do students learn to talk about media they did not make?
Students watch or listen to short pieces and describe what choices the maker made and why. A simple routine is to ask what they noticed, what it might mean, and whether the choices worked. This builds the same thinking they use on their own projects.
How do connections to history and culture fit in?
Students look at how media pieces reflect the time, place, and audience they were made for, then bring that thinking into their own work. A short clip about their neighborhood or family history is a good way in.
How do I know students are ready for seventh grade media arts?
Students should be able to pitch an idea, plan it on paper, produce a short finished piece, and explain the choices they made. They should also be able to give another student useful feedback that points at something specific in the work.