Featured Activity

And Now for a Commercial Message
(from Eco-Fun by David Suzuki & Kathy Vanderlinden)

Most Commercials say, "Buy more." Why not create one that says, "Don't buy so much?" If we buy less stuff, we'll produce less waste and pollution and save more energy.

What you need:

• Scrap paper and a pencil
• A meter stick
• Stiff paper or cardboard
• Markers or crayons
• Drawing paper
• Tape
• Scissors
• A large cardboard carton
• A wooden dowel (about 1.2 m or 4 feet long) or an old broom handle, to be cut into 2 dowels.

What to do:
1. This is a group activity, so get some friends together. Brainstorm ideas for your commercial. You might want to study a few TV commercials to see what they do to sell the message.

2. When you have your story worked out, make a rough storyboard. Draw 8 boxes on 1 or 2 sheets of scrap paper to represent TV screens. Roughly sketch the main scenes of your ad. Number the scenes.

3. Now write a rough script-what the characters and announcer say. If you’re using music, write down the title of the song and when it starts and stops. Number the speeches to match the scenes. When you’re happy with your script, make a cue card for each scene by printing the script for that scene in big letters on a sheet of stiff paper or cardboard.

4. Draw and colour each scene on a full sheet of paper. Draw with the long sides at the top and bottom. Then tape the sheets together in order vertically. Add a blank sheet at each end. If you like, use black construction paper for the end pieces.

5. Cut out a rectangular shape in the front of the cardboard carton to represent the screen. Make the hole about 2 cm (3/4 inch) smaller all the way around than your pictures. Draw a few buttons on the side or along the bottom of the hole.

6. You will need 2 dowels, each about 15 cm (6 inches) longer than the width of the box.

7. Cut 2 holes on each side of the box, 1 at the top and 1 at the bottom. Put them about 3 cm (1 inch) from the front edges. Make the holes big enough to hold the dowels a bit loosely; the dowels should turn easily. Push the dowels into the holes.

8. Working through the open back of the box, securely tape the bottom edge of your last blank page to the bottom dowel. Turn the dowel to roll all the drawings firmly around it. Tape the top edge of the first blank page to the top dowel. Turn your dowels to pull the paper flat.

9. One person rolls the scene by turning the top dowel. Another person holds the cue cards for the actors. And another handles the music. Practice a few times and then perform your commercial for an audience.

*By sharing what you know about protecting nature, you can inspire your friends and family to get involved too!  Encourage them to join the Nature Challenge - click here.