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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Kellogg Special K Ads

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Foster class discussion about body image with the resources and questions provided here. Focus on Special K's "look good on your own terms" ad campaign. Learners start by reading about this campaign and analyze a series of print ads,...
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Taking Charge of TV Violence

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Encourage your class to become aware of the violence that is present in children's television programs and how this violence can influence children. Do this by holding the planned class discussion in this lesson plan and providing...
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Bias

For Teachers 10th - 12th
See how bias operates firsthand. Half of the class reads one article while the other half reads another article on the same event. The obvious differences emerge when the two sides talk about their observations though. Several handouts...
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Hoax? Scholarly Research? Personal Opinion?

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Divide your class into groups to study the validity of online sources. One group looks at the authority and accuracy of four listed websites, another group looks at advocacy and objectivity, and the third group looks at currency and...
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Selling Tobacco

For Teachers 7th - 10th
Take a look at tobacco advertising techniques through the decades. Learners analyze the differences in strategies, and write an essay on the advertising history of one brand of tobacco, how tobacco advertising has changed over time, or...
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Violence on Television

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Focus on a specific incident of violence on television in the case of the Canadian Broadcast System showing Silence of the Lambs on public television. Look at the broadcasting codes and a complaint that was filed against the Association....
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

The Citizen Reporter

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Ripped from the headlines! Discuss topical social issues like racism, discrimination, and diversity while exploring the concept of citizen journalism. Begin with a professional-looking presentation on the history of citizen journalism....
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Learning Gender Stereotypes

For Teachers 8th - 9th
How do media representations influence our attitudes? Examining advertisements through the filter of gender representation forms the basis of this, the second of three lessons that address gender stereotypes. Resources include links,...
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Online Propaganda and the Proliferation of Hate

For Teachers 10th - 12th
After thoroughly examining the purposes and techniques of propaganda, your class will create and curate a Propaganda Museum to display and deconstruct original works of propaganda. Materials include propaganda techniques vocabulary, a...
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Facing TV Violence: Consequences and Media Violence

For Teachers 1st - 4th
Make your class aware of the difference between media violence and real violence. Using prior knowledge, a video clip, and a worksheet, class members explore and discuss the unrealistic portrayal of violence in the media. Learners...
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Don't Drink and Drive: Assessing the Effectiveness of Anti-Drinking Campaigns

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Have your class explore alcohol awareness public service announcements. Provided are a detailed plan and a complete set of materials for doing just this. Learners are exposed to a series of approaches and advertisements and decide which...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Cartoons for the Classroom: John Q. Public

For Students 11th - 12th
John Q. Public was a notable cartoon representation of the average American; but how accurate was this portrayal? Emergent analysts consider several topical points as they take a critical look into a cartoon portrayal of the American...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Cartoons for the Classroom: Satire or Slander

For Students 11th - 12th
Encourage your young learners to analyze and think critically about how media portrays people or events. Upper graders analyze a political cartoon depicting President Obama as a Muslim and the First Lady as a revolutionary. Guided by...
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Lesson Plan
Learning for Justice

Beauty is Skin Deep

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
If you are in need of a lesson on tolerance or the impact of media, this plan could be useful. The class begins with a brainstorming session in which they reflect on their own experiences with bias based on appearance. Next, they...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Messages and Viewpoint in Media

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Explore media point of view. In this literacy and current events lesson, pupils identify examples of first and third person point of view in media articles. They analyze examples of media, interpret the messages, and determine purposes...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

One Event: Different Perspectives

For Teachers 8th - 11th
Watch selected scenes from the mini-series, The Path to 9/11, and then have your class download and explore the 9/11 Commission Report. How are these two sources similar and different? Have your learners summarize each source and compare...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Identify Intended Media Messages

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
How does media convey different messages? Use this lesson to explore media by identifying and analyzing selected images. Middle schoolers analyze a poster and discuss the intended meaning of the imagery and how it makes them feel. They...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Current Events

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Here is an ongoing activity intended to build interest in local, national, and world news. The class is divided into four groups of approximately five students each. The groups are responsible for monitoring the daily news. They compose...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Watching the Elections

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students analyze the media products and advertising techniques used in political campaigns. In this elections lesson, students view political debates and then work in groups to find examples of types of advertising techniques used in...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"War of the Worlds": A Broadcast Re-Creation

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Why did Orson Welles' 1938 Broadcast of a adaptation of H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds cause such a panic? To answer this question, class members listen to the original broadcast and research the panic that resulted. They then engage...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Kids' Newsbreaks

For Teachers 6th - 11th
Group learners together to identify a question relating to an issue and create a 60-second kids news break highlighting information that begins to answer the question. They research and answer issue questions in a news story format. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sex on TV: Teens and Parents Talk

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Students observe human psychology by completing a media analysis worksheet. In this parent and teen communication lesson, students identify the main programs on television today and how sex is used to sell the program as well as...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Performance Event

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Young scholars examine the media by writing a compare/contrast paragraph. For this mass communications lesson, students identify and discuss the main sources of information for Americans in today's age. Young scholars analyze pictures of...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Propaganda of War

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine examples of war propaganda.  In this historical literature lesson plan, students research the elements of propaganda in relation to various wars of the past.  They discuss different types of propaganda, and the potential...