QUESTION: Teaching Tone vs Mood

[Liz Bremer]

I'm trying to teach my kids the difference between tone and mood. I was wondering if you would be able to suggest any films that would help me give the students a visual example. Of course, I'm only planning on using short clips, but I don't have a huge film repertoire to choose from. Thanks!

[John Golden]

Hi Liz:

Yup. Students always confuse "tone" and "mood." For "tone," I always substitute the phrase "attitude toward subject." Here's a handout from a presentation that I did at NCTE a few years back that includes some images and culminates in a short documentary film project that asks students to express a particular tone/attitude toward their chosen topic. Have a great and restful summer. 

John

[Anna J. Small Roseboro]

Thanks for sharing your resources, John.  They're really helpful.

 

[Kelly Farrow]

Building off John's comments below, if tone is the character's attitude toward something, find a clip that focuses on dialogue or that show a character in a monologue clearly revealing his opinions and attitudes toward something or someone. For mood, don't focus on the dialogue or the characters but rather the atmosphere of the film: dark and scary, celebratory and festive, tense and anxious, etc. You pick up on the mood more from the music and what you see than you do just from what you hear, I think.

[Brandi]

Hi Liz,

Film clips are great! I have blogged about this:

http://brandiclark.blogspot.com/search/label/tone%20and%20mood

 

Also check out

Original Mary Poppin's Trailer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuWf9fP-A-U

Re-cut Version

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2T5_0AGdFic

 

[Teri Nelson]

I've done this exact activity with these youtube clips.  There are also similar clips for Shrek, Cinderella, The Ring, IT, and Toy Story.  My question to you is, do you use these clips to teach mood or tone?  I've always used it with mood.

[Liz Bremer]

Thank you so much for all of your help!