You are going to read four reviews by teenagers of documentaries they have watched. For questions 1-10, choose from the reviewers (A-D). The reviewers may be chosen more than once.
Which reviewer
1 managed to gain some of the knowledge they had hoped/expected to?
2 was pleased with the outcome of someone’s efforts shown in the programme?
3 says they were inspired to take action after watching the programme?
4 believes that certain facts about a subject will never be revealed?
5 realised something they had been doing wrong before seeing the programme?
6 says they admired the way a programme presented its special effects?
7 was initially unwilling to watch the programme?
8 was disappointed with one aspect of the programme they saw?
9 corrects something they have said earlier in their review?
10 says they regret not having taken more notice of a subject when they had the chance?
TV documentaries
A Dan Parker reviews Polar bear
I saw Polar bear with my whole family and I was impressed by how it managed to get across some quite complicated information in a way that even my sister, who’s a few years younger than me, could understand. I didn’t feel talked down to, either, like I sometimes do: some documentaries provide only the most basic facts about an issue and you’re often left with lots of unanswered questions. Polar bear approached the subject of global warming in a fascinating way. A polar bear was tracked for a year and we saw its habitat through its own eyes, observing how it tried to adapt to new challenges and seeing first-hand the impact on its life that melting ice is having. I felt more determined than ever to get involved in raising awareness about these issues, and I signed up to a local environmental group for young people straightaway.
B Nelly Jones reviews Practice makes perfect
I love playing basketball but I never seem to get any better, no matter how hard I’m working. Maybe that should be no matter how hard I think I’m working. That was the point of Practice makes perfect. It documented a percussionist called Rob, who wanted to get a place in an orchestra but just wasn’t making it, even though he’d been to a ton of auditions and was an amazing player. An expert observed him practising one day and noticed that Rob was playing rhythms he was so familiar with that he wasn’t really thinking about them. He was advised to do something called ‘purposeful practice’ – concentrating on what he was doing and trying to do it better. It was a real eye-opener for me and I understood why I hadn’t improved my game for ages. Oh, and after spending time with the expert, Rob got his dream job! That was the coolest bit.
C Lucas Martin reviews Dinosaurs
I’ve never really been into dinosaurs and I wasn’t in the least interested in watching another documentary about them. My family wanted to see it so I just thought, ‘Well, I’ve got nothing to lose’. I was instantly hooked! The special effects were incredible as they often are in those kinds of programme, but I started thinking about how much the film-markers actually knew, and how much was simply guesswork on their part. How did they know what colour dinosaurs were? Is that really how the creatures moved? These are all things that to my knowledge are too late to discover. I thought I’d learnt everything there was to know about the different kinds of dinosaur but when the presenter mentioned that there’d been hundreds of kinds I was pretty shocked. How come I hadn’t known that? Perhaps I hadn’t paid enough attention at school. I definitely should have.
D Hayley Vickers reviews Making changes
The minute I saw this programme advertised, I knew I had to watch it. I’m really into making films about issues which affect young people, and I’m always looking for ways to improve my skills or present stuff in an attention-grabbing kind of way. The subject matter of Making changes was already appealing (it was about the power of advertising and how it can be used for the greater good), but it also focused on new media and I thought I could pick up a few tips about getting messages across so that young people like me can get their ideas heard in an adult world. The programme was interesting, but although I did learn one or two things about improving my filming, I felt the content was a bit repetitive. It was still worth watching, though.
Answer
1 D 2 B 3 A 4 C 5 B 6 A 7 C 8 D 9 B 10 C