|
|
Greetings, TV viewers!
Some broadcast and cable
programs contain material included in the public school curriculum and on
standardized exams. Here are home-viewing suggestions for February 14-20, 2005.
The topic for this week's Media Hour is Area 51! We'll discuss UFOs, aliens, and other totally unproven (but not necessarily disproven) extraterrestrial events and theories. Watch Thursday night's show on the Discovery Channel, or pick up a book at the library, or read several websites to get ready! There's a LOT of ideas and claims about aliens out there, so don't come in with half-baked email forward stories. We want to really talk about what you know, what you believe, and what gives you reason to know/believe these things.
Now that I know how to run polls, we'll be holding a few trivia questions during the Hour. Think you've got the smarts to answer 'em? You'll need to watch the shows and read the websites to be sure!
Remember to come to Saturday's Media Hour prepared. It's all about an open discussion, with everybody pitching in on a good topic -- bounce off of what other people say, too, and talk amongst yourselves while I'm down there! Explore what everyone thinks and remind us to think about what was in the shows and on the websites. The more you help others discuss things (and the more you know about the shows), the better your chances of getting on stage, or even earning clams.
What's the Media Hour? Watch the show(s)-of-the-week, jot down some ideas, then
come and talk about them with me and other citizens (including other City Workers,
if they're available). We get together at the Greek Theater (next to
City Hall), every Saturday morning at 9 a.m., Whyville Time. You'll find that
discussions are easier in the Theater, since everyone's chat bubbles overlap
a little less than in other rooms, and City Workers are able to direct people's
movement and behavior, when we need to.
|
Monday, February 14
7-8 a.m. E/P
|
A&E (A&E Channel)
|
English
|
Middle and High School
|
|
"A&E Classroom:
Jane Austen"
|
|
This early morning broadcast
is worth seeing, worth taping and worth taking to school as a present
to your English teacher. It's a documentary on the life of the British
author whose teenage imagination produced some of literature's greatest
stories. Jane Austen (1775-1817) wrote two literary classics -- "Sense
and Sensibility" and "Pride and Prejudice" -- before she
turned 21. And although she never married, she led a happy and active
life, seemingly untouched by the dramatic incidents that filled her characters'
lives. TVPG
|
|
Tuesday, February 15
8-9 p.m. E/P
|
PBS
|
Technology and American History
|
Middle and High School
|
|
"NOVA: Saving The National
Treasure"
|
|
Every year, more than a million people visit the rotunda at the National
Archives in Washington to gaze at three documents that define our nation's
heritage: the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill
of Rights. But these documents of democracy are in serious trouble. The
ink is flaking from parchments that are already badly faded, while the
glass casements built to exhibit them are disintegrating. To head off
the danger, the Archives embarked on a five-year project to design state-of-the-art
encasements and a new rotunda. This program covers the history of these
documents and the engineering efforts to be safeguarding America's equivalent
of the Crown Jewels.
|
|
Log on http://www.pbs.org/nova/
|
|
Tuesday, February 15
9-10 p.m. E/P
|
PBS
|
Social Studies and American History
|
High School
|
|
"Frontline: Rumsfeld's
War"
|
|
The United States Army is serving in a dozen hot spots
around the world, on constant alert in Afghanistan and taking casualties every
day in Iraq. Some current and former officers now say the army is on the
verge of being "broken." They say the army is overstretched, demoralized and
may be unable to fight where and when American needs them. This program,
co-produced with the Washington Post, assesses the state of the U.S. military
establishment. The program digs into the aggressive attempts to assert
civilian control and remake the military by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
|
|
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/
|
|
Wednesday, February 16
8:30-9 p.m. E/P
|
PBS
|
Science and Geography
|
Middle and High School
|
|
"Scientific American
Frontiers: Hot Planet -- Cold Comfort"
|
|
In a new series of half-hour episodes in magazine format, host Alan Alda covers the latest trends in science, medicine, technology and
the environment. This time he asks, "So you think global warming won't affect
you? Wait until the great Atlantic Conveyor shuts down. And find out what's
already happening in Alaska."
|
|
Thursday, February 17
9-10 p.m. E/P
|
DISC (Discovery Channel)
|
Geography and Science
|
Middle and High School
|
|
"Area 51"
|
|
Northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada is a place known as Area 51.
Although the U.S. government denies its existence, Area 51 has become part of
pop culture, inspiring films, books and TV. This documentary explore these
stories and the workings of the cloak of secrecy that surrounds the actual
military base.
|
|
Friday, February 18
7-8 a.m. E/P
|
A&E (A&E Channel)
|
American History
|
Middle and High School
|
|
"A&E Classroom: Thurgood Marshall"
|
|
Here's another program very much worth the trouble to tape
or get up and see early. Airing in observance of Black History Month, it's a
profile of the crusading attorney and civil rights activist who led the fight
against school desegregation and became the first African-American to sit on
the U.S. Supreme Court. TVG.
|
|
Friday, February 18
9-10 p.m. E/P
|
TRAV (Travel Channel)
|
Geography and American History
|
Middle and High School
|
|
"The Once And Future City Atlanta"
|
|
The threads of history, popular culture, architecture and social development
created the modern American metropolises that we know and travel to today.
This program plots Atlanta's course through the tragedy (it burned) of
the Civil War, the triumph of Coca Cola's corporate success, the difficult
transition through racial integration and the emergence of the post-Olympic
metropolis.
|
|
Saturday, February 19
8-9 p.m. E/P
|
ANML (Animal Planet Channel)
|
Natural Science
|
Elementary, Middle and High School
|
|
"The Planet's Funniest
Animals: Blue Ribbon Awards"
|
|
Some programs about animals can be fun as well as
educational. This one brings together the best and funniest videos from three
seasons of Animal Planet's hit series, "The Planet's Funniest
Animals". Ribbons will be awarded for Best Musical Performance,
Outstanding Animal Fashions and, of course, Best in Show.
|
|
Sunday, February 20
8-9 p.m. E/P
|
BRAV (Bravo Channel)
|
Social Studies and American History
|
High School
|
|
"Inside The Actor's Studio:
Morgan Freeman"
|
|
On each episode of this show,
cameras cover students as they learn from one of today's great actors.
Guests have included Clint Eastwood, Julia Roberts, Johnny Depp, Tom Hanks,
and Will Smith. In this episode it's Oscar Nominee Morgan Freeman. The
episodes begin with a discussion of the featured actor's roots -- where
they were born, their childhood experiences and their parents' professions.
Other topics include how important is the physical part of creating a
role, how might training in dance and movement have helped? After viewing
one of these programs you might want to watch, or re-watch, a movie starring
an actor you've seen there and keep a close eye on their performance and
the craft choices they make as they play the role. Does knowing about
the actor add to your enjoyment of the movie, or does it detract from
it?
|
|
Log on http://www.newschool.edu/academic/drama/index.html
|
|
