Lesson 5: Climate Storytelling & Video Planning

Show one fear-based climate message (example)  and one hopeful, action-oriented message (example). Facilitate a brief discussion about which message is more motivating.

• Which message made you want to learn more?
• Which message would motivate you to take action?
• Why do you think those messages had different effects?

Key Idea: Climate education is not only about understanding problems, it is also about imagining solutions and believing that change is possible.

Guide students through a quick-write and/or discussion on the following prompt: Think of a time you tried to convince someone of something. What did you say or do to make your argument more convincing?

Show “Ethos, Pathos, Logos” (3:15) by Tamu Writing Center, in order to briefly introduce ethos, pathos, and logos as three ways communicators can connect with an audience:

• Ethos: Build credibility or trust.
• Pathos: Connect with emotions, values, or experiences.
• Logos: Use facts, evidence, or reasoning.

Show and discuss “A #NatureNow Message from Greta Thunberg” (3:39 minutes), a production of WWF International.  

• Ask students:
  • What is the message? What does Greta and her team want the audience to know, feel, or do?
  • How is the message communicated? Identify examples of ethos, pathos, and logos, as well as effective choices involving visuals, shots, editing, music, or sound.

Show the CIC’s 2026 Best Storytelling video, “The Breath of Change” by Shubh Shrivastava, a grade 12 student at Cambridge School Indirapuram in Ghaziabad, India

• Ask students:
  • What is the central message or idea?
  • Which storytelling choices make that message compelling?
  • Where do you see ethos, pathos, or logos?
  • What could you borrow or adapt for your own CIC video?

Have students write or share this storytelling takeaway: 

A storytelling technique I could use to make my CIC idea more compelling is ______ because ______.

Before students begin scripting or storyboarding, ask them to think about the specific story they want their video to tell. Strong climate communication helps an audience understand what is happening, who or what is affected, why it matters, and what can be done about it.

Have students complete these prompts on LESSON 5: BUILDING YOUR CLIMATE STORY  in their CIC SECONDARY STUDENT WORKBOOK to develop a short story arc for their CIC video.

1. Context: What does your audience need to understand first?
   Introduce the issue, place, community, or situation. What information does someone need in order to understand the rest of your story?
2. Tension: What is changing or going wrong?
   Identify the central problem or conflict. What makes this issue urgent, difficult, surprising, or important?
3. Stakes: Why should your audience care?
   Who or what is affected by this problem? Consider people, communities, ecosystems, animals, places, or future generations. What could happen if nothing changes?
4. Evidence: What will make your story credible?
   Choose the strongest research, data, examples, interviews, or observations that help your audience understand the problem. Rather than including every fact you found, select the evidence that best supports the story you are trying to tell.
5. Response: What can be done?
   Introduce the solution or response you want your audience to understand. How does it address the problem you identified? What evidence suggests that it could make a difference?
6. Audience: What do you want viewers to leave thinking, feeling, or doing?
   Decide what you want your audience to remember after watching the video. Is there a specific action they can take? A belief you want them to reconsider? A question you want them to keep thinking about?

After students complete the prompts, ask them to summarize their entire video in two or three sentences. If they cannot explain the central story clearly and concisely, encourage them to narrow their focus before moving into scripting and storyboarding.

This activity gives students an opportunity to analyze how past CIC participants used evidence, storytelling, local relevance, implementation, and other judging criteria to communicate their ideas effectively. Students can use these examples to identify strengths and opportunities for improvement in their own projects before beginning production. Note: These criteria are taken directly from the CIC Judging Rubric 2026/27.

Students should work alone or in their CIC groups to watch two award winning videos from the 2026 CAVU Student Showcase. 

After watching each one, students should analyze the video using these prompts on the LESSON 5: WHAT MAKES A STRONG CIC VIDEO? activity in their CIC SECONDARY STUDENT WORKBOOK:

1. Climate Understanding & Research: What climate issue does the video address, and what evidence helps the audience understand the problem and its local impact?
2. Solution Design: What solution do the student(s) propose? How is the solution connected to the climate issue, and what makes their idea realistic, creative, or effective?
3. Local Action & Community Impact: How could this solution make a difference in the students’ school, household, or community?
   1. If the students implemented their solution, what evidence shows it in action?
   2. If they did not implement it, how clearly do they explain how it could be carried out?
4. Storytelling: What makes the story clear, engaging, or memorable? What do the students want their audience to think, feel, or do?
5. Video Production & Design: What choices make the video easy to understand and follow? Consider visuals, audio, speaking, editing, text, titles, and other production choices.
6. What is one choice these students made that you could borrow, adapt, or try in your own CIC video?

Bring students back together and discuss the following prompt: Return to your own CIC story. Based on what you noticed in these examples, what is one thing you could strengthen before moving into production?

Introduce commonly used pre-production tools to help students be organized, such as storyboards and scripts. While it may be tempting to jump straight into production, ask students to take their time to develop the story that they want to tell.  

It can be helpful to create a storyboard or script before beginning production. Canva offers free templates for both formats that students can adapt to fit their project.

• Canva’s Pre-Production Templates:
• • Creating a Storyboard Template
  • Documentary Script Template
• Explain that these tools serve different purposes. A storyboard helps students plan the sequence of their video and think visually about what the audience will see. A script helps students plan what will be said and how their message will unfold.
• Encourage students to think about how each visual supports the story they are telling. Rather than simply repeating what is being said, visuals should help explain the problem, provide evidence, show impacts, introduce the solution, or make the message more engaging.

Have students organize their projects for video production using a storyboard, script, or a combination of both.

• As students plan, encourage them to consider:
  • What will the audience see and hear at each point in the video?
  • What is the purpose of each scene or section?
  • Where will they include evidence, interviews, statistics, graphics, or other supporting information?
  • What footage or materials will they need to create or collect?
  • How will they move clearly from the problem to the solution and call to action?

Remind students that these materials do not need to be perfect. Their purpose is to serve as a blueprint for production and help students identify gaps, strengthen their story, and make filming and editing more efficient. 

Students should also consider creating a timeline for their production to stay organized.  

Ask students to complete these three statements as an exit ticket

• My video’s central message is:
• One thing I want my audience to understand, feel, or do is:
• One storytelling or CIC criterion I will focus on as I develop my video is: