Faith Curriculum Library: Tapestry of Faith: A Chorus of Faiths: A Program That Builds Interfaith Youth Leaders

Alternate Activity 3: Public Service Announcement

Part of A Chorus of Faiths

Activity time: 60 minutes

Materials for Activity

  • Paper and pens
  • Video recording equipment
  • Optional: Video editing equipment
  • Computer with Internet access

Preparation for Activity

  • Select one or more popular, current public service announcements (PSAs) to show the group. A popular PSA about fatherhood from the Ad Council can be found on YouTube. Others created by the Ad Council can be found here.
  • Identify videotape production skills and equipment resources among the A Chorus of Faiths participants, their family members and friends, interfaith youth partners, and the wider congregational community. Plan the scope of your PSA project based on available resources.
  • Test all equipment.

Description of Activity

Participants create a public service announcement (PSA) about the importance of interfaith work to post online and/or provide to local television stations for cablecasting.

Ask participants to recall recent public service announcements they have seen or heard in the media. Ask a few volunteers to briefly describe one and to say what they liked about it, what they did not like about it, and whether they found it effective.

Watch a few PSAs online. After each, ask:

  • What did you like?
  • What didn't you like?
  • Was it effective? Why?

Say, in your own words:

With our interfaith service event coming up, it would be great to use some of the "telling the world" skills we are building and create a public service announcement. How do you think we can best share what we are doing?

Work together on a concept for an interfaith PSA. Then, plan the script and the action you will videotape. Consider using a storyboard to sketch out the PSA. The X Insight website has a storyboard template you can download. Will your shots be long, medium, or close-ups? Will you include graphics? In video storytelling, varying the shots is effective.

Decide what sort of location and props you will use. Cast actors and assign roles for pre-production (script, costumes), production (lighting, videotaping, sound recording, acting), and post-production (editing, graphics).

Once planning is complete, shoot it, edit it, and upload to YouTube or another source, to share with friends and family in anticipation of your great work.