Teaching Tolerance
Advertising on the Internet
Believe it or not, everyone plays a role in Internet advertising. Scholars explore the topic with a podcast about Internet advertising and personal identity. Next, partners plan and produce their own public service announcements to...
Teaching Tolerance
Listen Up! PSA for Change
Challenge scholars to speak up about a topic by creating a public service announcement or social media blitz about an issue they feel passionate about. Have them research their issues, then decide the best way to take their messages to...
Online Publications
Become a Journalist
Explore the newspaper as a unique entity with a detailed and extended unit. The unit requires learners to consider the newspaper's role in democracy, think about ethics, practice writing and interviewing, and examine advertising and news...
Curated OER
Life as a Legend: Marilyn Monroe: What is Beautiful?
Students consider the notion of beauty and what impact the media and popular culture have on it. In this cross curricular instructional activity, students examine print ads, write down and share their thoughts on them. Then students form...
Curated OER
Now That's Beautiful!
Your class experiences dozens of messages about beauty every day by reading magazines, watching movies, and listening to the radio. Have them analyze society's view of beauty in groups after discussing several resources, including Dove's...
Developing a Global Perspective for Educators
The Lorax - Language
First graders identify text features and how they communicate meaning to the reader. For this media literacy instructional activity, learners view the movie The Lorax and discuss how students from another country would respond to this...
Curated OER
Cool Commercials Critique
Students investigate advertising by critiquing commercials in class. In this media lesson, students view several commercials on their computers while completing a worksheet which helps them critique the ads. Students define several...
Institute for Humane Education
I've Been Branded!
How many pairs of Nikes® or Apple® products are in the average American home? What makes someone buy one particular type of laundry detergent over another? Scholars grapple with these questions as they develop a list of brands they use...
Curated OER
Creating Your Own Ad
Students analyze the effective advertisements in print and Internet ads. In this advertisements lesson, students create a collage of original and repurposed words, graphics, and images of advertisements. Students create a poster for the...
Newseum
Photo Ethics: Diversity
With the advent of photo manipulation software, it is possible to digitally edit a photograph in a way that is virtually undetectable. The question asked of young journalists in this lesson is whether such manipulation is ethical. Groups...
Curated OER
Read loud: The Media
In this media read aloud activity, learners read a dialogue aloud in pairs. Student A will ask a question about the media, and Student B gives the answer.
Curated OER
Our Computers, Ourselves: Imagining the Digital Lives of Authors and Characters
The guiding question for this lesson is "Do computers and their contents shape who we are?" Open with a selection of Apple's commercials to introduce stereotypes and people's relationships with their computers. Then, read the attached...
Curated OER
Credible Sources on the Internet: What to Trust, What to Dismiss and When to Cite a Source
Wait, you mean researchers don't all use Wikipedia? Teach your class about intelligent research with a lesson about evaluating digital sources. The lesson starts with a quickwrite and includes vocabulary exercises and several...
Curated OER
Adventures in Africa
Students research Africa and prepare an advertisement about travelling to the continent. In this African travel lesson, students research a country in Africa and write an advertisement that encourages travel to the country. Students...
Curated OER
Invent a Critter
Students create a living animal that could survive in at least one specific region and use the digital desert library to gather information. In this invent a critter lesson, students draw a picture of their animal, describe their animal...
Curated OER
PSAs: The Way We See It - Uncommercials
Students work in groups to identify a topic or issue that they feel passionate about and produce a short PSA for the topic. In this PSA instructional activity, students select an issue or social problem to research. Students create a...
Curated OER
Social Effects of WWII on South Carolina
Young scholars study the history of South Carolina and the impact World War II had on the state. In this WWII history lesson, students research the social effects incurred from WWII on the people of South Carolina. Young scholars develop...
Curated OER
Is Modern Culture Ruining Childhood?
There are a lot of different ways a learner could respond to this New York Times article discussing the effects of modern culture on childhood. After reading the article, pupils construct a thoughtful blog post. The guiding questions...
Curated OER
Sly Book Channel
Create a commercial for a favorite book and broadcast this pitch on the Sly Book Channel! Learners practice retelling, summarizing, comparing/contrasting, and evaluation skills as they prepare their scripts. The approved scripts are then...