Sunday, March 16, 2014

Last Minute Advice for the IB Presentations


What you need to do:
  1. Read book.
  2. Choose one major literary device: plot, character(s), theme(s), symbol(s), other.
  3. Watch movie.
  4. Compare how the movie handled--or didn't handle--the [insert major literary device] found in the novel.
  5. Prepare a 10-12 minute class presentation on book's use of [insert major literary device] vs. the movie's use of the same.
Suggestions for how to do Step 5 (any of the following used individually or in concert could help your presentation):
  1. Talk about what interested you about the novel/film, and how the subtle/obvious nature of the [major literary device] that was present in the novel was/wasn't handled in the film satisfactorily.
  2. Write a simple compare-and-contrast paper about the your topic and read it to the class. (You really need to be more creative than this, but this would be the bare minimum needed to "pass.")
  3. Create a slide show/PowerPoint with highlights from your presentation to guide your audience as you teach your topic.
  4. Bring in the DVD (or a link on the Internet) and show a BRIEF clip from the movie to illustrate your claim(s) about your topic. By "brief" I mean anything up to the length of a movie trailer, but could include a series of shorter clips used to support your findings. 
  5. Dress up in a school-appropriate costume to narrate your presentation. Note: you really should not dress up like a Spartan warrior to talk about Pride and Prejudice, but dressing up like a samurai to discuss Kurosawa's interpretation of Shakespeare would be acceptable as long as the costume is not a substitute for analysis. Costumes are only window dressing; therefore, this is entirely optional.
  6. Interpretive dance followed by a 10-12 minute class presentation on book's use of [insert major literary device] vs. the movie's use of the same.
  7. Watch the "making of" section of the DVD and find out if the filmmakers had to make compromises/refused to make compromises in the translation of the novel to film. There may even be some kind of production notes online that discuss similar topics, particularly for popular older films or newer films with big marketing budgets. Note: this is called "research," and its inclusion is always encouraged in a scholarly presentation.
  8. Be creative and come up with another way to impart information about a topic to an audience of your peers. Your target audience is about 15-17 years old; don't bore them.