1. Public Service Announcement

Hi! My name is Quentin.

I'm a Senior Video Specialist here at the South Carolina Google Data Center.

In this activity, I will show you how to create a Public Service Announcement – also known as a P-S-A.

A PSA is a special type of message that gives people information about an issue, then asks them to change something in their own lives or to help others.

PSAs come in many different formats--such as posters, radio announcements, and even coding projects people make in Scratch.

A PSA might educate people about an environmental issue and ask them to take action by recycling or using less water.

Or, a PSA might talk about the dangers of too much sun, then motivate people to protect their skin.

PSAs ask people to do many different types of actions, like, doing something good for your community taking care of your body, or showing kindness.

To create your PSA, you’ll use dialogue.

Dialogue is a conversation between two or more characters.

What your characters say to each other about the issue your PSA is about, and what they ask the audience to do, is totally up to you!

The dialogue in your PSA might share a message about how to help your community, the environment, or other people.

You might have one character share facts or statistics about an issue.

It should also include a specific action people can take.

To start, open the Starter Project Add two characters, or "sprites" to your story.

Notice that some sprites already have multiple costumes.

You can even add a backdrop if you like.

Choose characters and backdrops that fit your PSA.

This will help your audience understand and want to take action.

To make your sprites face each other, go to the costume editor.

and select Flip Horizontal.

When you're ready, come back to this page to check out more ways to add to your PSA.