What it’s all about

Organising a school trip is never as appealing as it sounds. But our trip to Sky Skills Studios - a pioneering new educational facility that offers a television production experience in real studios to children aged 8-18 - made the paperwork worthwhile. From the moment the children entered the West London studios, they were captivated, writes Kerry Dunford.

Split into three groups, in a three-hour session, they were helped to write, shoot and edit their own TV report in one of four simulated “live” studios. With the help of a skilled production leader they used real HD cameras, editing desks, green screens and props. The final reports were then topped and tailed with clips from Sky presenters.

The children were each allocated a role - editor, presenter, camera operator, etc - and each completed a section of the film, which was then edited to produce the final cut.

We produced a story about the Olympic and Paralympic Games, exploring the competition for places, how athletes became involved, how young people can follow in their footsteps and the legacy.

The children had to match their topic with the correct footage, writing their scripts as they went along. The presenter was given a professional- looking outfit and filmed against a digital background.

They adored the experience and some now want to pursue a career in TV. At the end, every child had participated and there was an immense sense of achievement.

What else?

BBC Class Clips - Media has shared a video introduction to film-making, bit.lyBBCmakeafilm. Or try a lesson plan and resources from Adobe to help pupils make their own documentaries, bit.lyAdobedocs.