1 - Introduction ~5 mins
Welcome
A client or employer will not sit through a messy video or a muddled podcast. Structure still comes first. Design and polish wait until the skeleton is solid.
Today you lock structure for non-slide formats. You will use three core patterns: a timed podcast outline, an infographic hierarchy, and a hook-first short-form storyboard. Explainer video and carousel use the same spine with longer beats or more slides.
No plan yet? Write one of podcast / infographic / short-form / explainer / carousel, plus audience and purpose, on your sticky now.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Build a structural skeleton for your format 2 using one of the three core patterns (audio outline, infographic hierarchy, or short-form storyboard)
- Place a strong hook first and lock timings or order before design
- Save {{code:sm2_format2_skeleton}} as specialism Key Assignment evidence
Warm-up
Without opening any design app, picture your format 2. What is the very first thing the audience should notice or hear in the opening three to fifteen seconds? Hold that answer. You will put it at the top of your skeleton today.
2 - Key Concepts ~6 mins
Every non-slide format still needs a skeleton before you touch colours, music, or effects. Keep these three rules in view while you build.
- Structure first — lock order, timings, and hierarchy before design or recording.
- The hook earns attention — the opening seconds decide whether anyone stays.
- Hierarchy and timings beat decoration — plain beats with a job still work; pretty design cannot rescue a muddled sequence.
Your teacher will demo these three core patterns live. Use the table as a quick checklist, not a full reading task.
| Concept | Why it matters | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Podcast / audio outline — timed hook, 3 key points, clear close | Listeners cannot skim; weak openings lose them | — |
| Infographic hierarchy — headline, 3 points, one takeaway | Readers scan in seconds; size and order show what matters | — |
| Hook-first short-form storyboard — 15–60s vertical: hook, setup, payoff, CTA (ask / what to do next) | First three seconds earn the rest of the watch | Niamh's six frames below (main teach) |
Variants (same spine): Explainer video stretches the same beats into 2–5 minutes with narration notes. Instagram carousel turns the spine into six square slides: {{code:1 problem · 2 proof · 3 step · 4 step · 5 result · 6 ask/sources}}.
Worked example: Niamh's format 2 skeleton
Niamh's Something Real is a Work Experience report from a local café. Format 1 is her VET slide deck. Format 2 is a 45-second vertical short-form video for classmates considering the same placement type. Watch the board as your teacher marks the timings. Notice: no filters, no music, no font yet — only order, timing, and what each beat must achieve. CTA means the closing ask (what to do next).
- Frame 1 (0–3s) hook: On-screen text "The skill nobody told me I'd need on day one"
- Frame 2 (3–8s) setup: "Week 1 on the till at a busy café"
- Frame 3 (8–18s) payoff: calm under queue pressure
- Frame 4 (18–28s) payoff: accurate cash-up
- Frame 5 (28–38s) payoff: clear handover notes
- Frame 6 (38–45s) CTA: "Want the full log? Ask me after class"
3 - Step-by-step Task ~15 mins
Build a short reference sheet of non-slide structure patterns while your teacher demos on the board or screen. Open the shared template already in {{code:sm2}} so the headings and empty sample lines are ready. You are capturing labels and one sample line per beat from the projected model, not inventing your own project yet and not finishing full media.
Everyone completes sections A–C by pasting or typing the board samples. Section D (variants) is a quick paste from the template if time allows. Keep pace with the board; do not worry if you tidy a heading after the demo moves on.
4 - Common Issues ~4 mins
Common Issues
| Issue | Solution |
|---|---|
| I started designing in my head or opened a template before the beats were locked | Stop decorating. Return to your skeleton document. You only open the creative tool after every beat has a job and a rough time or order. |
| My short-form hook is buried in frame 3 | Move the strongest line or image to frame 1 (0–3s). Setup comes second. If a stranger would not stop scrolling in three seconds, rewrite the hook. |
| My podcast outline has eight "key" points | Cut to three points (hook, three points, close). Merge overlaps; audio cannot carry a long list without losing the listener. |
| My infographic treats every fact as equal size | Rewrite the hierarchy: one headline, three to five supporting points, one takeaway. The takeaway should answer "so what?" for your audience. |
5 - Independent Practice ~20 mins
Independent Practice
- Hook rewrite (about one minute). Rewrite only Niamh's Frame 1 hook in one line for your project. Example swap: Niamh's "The skill nobody told me I'd need on day one" becomes "Three stocktakes taught me more than the till training" for a Centra placement. Your teacher may hear one or two hooks aloud against the three-second stranger test.
- Create {{code:sm2_format2_skeleton}}. Make the file in {{code:09_specialism/sm2}}. At the top type your format 2 name, audience, and purpose. Tick one pattern from the slot list below.
- Fill that one pattern with real beats. Copy only the matching pattern headings from your practice sheet (or the board). Replace every sample line with real Something Real content, not placeholders.
Ugly honest beats beat polished empty ones. If a line feels awkward, keep it and tighten the hook first; design comes next lesson.
If your project beats are thin: use Niamh's café spine and swap two lines for your placement, then write your real format 2 choice at the top for next lesson.
- {{code:sm2_format2_skeleton}} sits inside {{code:09_specialism/sm2}} and names your format 2, audience, and purpose at the top
- The skeleton follows one correct pattern for that format (timed audio beats, infographic hierarchy, hook-first frames, explainer arc, or carousel slots)
- Every beat uses real Something Real content (or the café fallback with two personalised lines), and the opening hook or headline would make sense to a stranger in under three seconds of reading or listening
- You could hand this page to a partner and they could explain the whole piece without asking what happens next
- Podcast / audio: Hook (0–15s) · Point 1 · Point 2 · Point 3 · Close
- Infographic: Headline · Point 1 · Point 2 · Point 3 · Takeaway
- Short-form (15–60s): 1 Hook · 2 Setup · 3–5 Payoff · 6 CTA
- Explainer (2–5 min): Beginning (hook + problem) · Middle (2–3 proof beats + narration notes) · End (result + CTA)
- Carousel (6 slides): 1 problem · 2 proof · 3 step · 4 step · 5 result · 6 ask/sources
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