All quiet on the set! Seventh graders from Paramount Charter Academy tape newscasts at K College facilities

By Alison Black Special to Kalamazoo Gazette
1/25/2011
"All quiet on the set!": Seventh-graders from Paramount Charter Academy tape newscasts at K-College facilities
Published: Tuesday, January 25, 2011, 11:15 AM     Updated: Tuesday, January 25, 2011, 11:26 AM
By Alison Black | Special to the Kalamazoo Gazette The Kalamazoo Gazette

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COURTESY/ PARAMOUNT CHARTER ACADEMY Camera time: Paramount Charter Academy seventh-graders Brooke Washington, left, and Aaron Foster, center, receive instruction from Kalamazoo College media arts instructor Dhera Strauss during a field trip to Kalamazoo College's TV production facility.
 
KALAMAZOO — "All quiet on the set!" called a voice from a dimly lit control room in Kalamazoo College's television production facility.

Seventh-graders from Paramount Charter Academy went to work.

Brooke Washington trained a camera on classmates Makenna Sandt and Morgan Mckee, who stood before a green screen to anchor a newscast recapping the week in politics.  
 
About a dozen other students tapped various control panels, bringing light, theme music, titles, credits, and background stills including maps and photographs to the production, which was screened at a Paramount student assembly.
The recent field trip for Paramount’s current-event class was organized to give Paramount students hands-on experience with professional production equipment, teacher Erika Balkema said.
Each week, the class uses standard digital cameras to produce a news report for the student body.
"The students were really enjoying the class as it was, but to see how the professionals do it really means a lot," Balkema said.
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COURTESY/ PARAMOUNT CHARTER ACACEMYAnchor: Seventh-grader Morgan Mckee prepares to anchor a news segment during a field trip to Kalamazoo College's TV production facility.
 
Another goal was to help acquaint students with life on a college campus.  On hand to assist with filming were K-College media arts instructor Dhera Strauss, media technician Jaaken Page and TV/film production students Mariel Watson and Duncan Polot.
"I'm hoping (the Paramount students) were able to see college as a cool place where you can explore your passions," Strauss said. 
Alternately, Strauss said, she hoped the undergraduates were able to reinforce their newly acquired skills by teaching them to the younger students.
Until kids have a chance to explore a professional production facility, they may not realize how many off-camera roles support on-screen talent, Strauss said.
"It's good to know everybody involved.  There might just be a place for you that you haven't considered before," Strauss said.
Seventh-grader Matthew Heyart enjoyed learning to use a sound board to contribute introduction and exit music to the newscast.
"It was pretty fun," Heyart said.  "It looked confusing but I figured it out and it was actually pretty easy."
Jillian Kalhorn said she enjoyed working both as a director - "I like to be in charge" - and as an anchor, despite one complication:  "The green screen turned my blond hair green.  Other than that, I really liked it."
In addition to the newscast, the students also filmed a pizza commercial, a commentary on perseverance and a segment offering test-taking tips. 
Students rotated among roles including technical and floor directors, camera operators, talent and others.
Kalhorn said that studying current events "doesn't really ever get boring."
"Kids need to know what's going on in the world,” she said. “You're not going to be in the same place all the time.  You've got to be aware of your surroundings.”
 
 

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