Critical thinking and social justice are central themes for this resource on bias and crime in media. The class views and discusses an incisive PSA that highlights assumptions based on race. Small groups read newspaper opinion pieces...

Although students are aware of news as information that influences their perceptions of the world, they are often unaware of the various ways to present that information. Encourage them to investigate, discuss, analyze and make valuable...

What part does media play in creating, defining, and perpetuating popular culture? High schoolers chart their encounters with fads, trends, and icons and reflect on the media's influence on popular culture.

Even young children watch sports and like team logos and products. It's never too early to think critically about what's onscreen. This exercise develops awareness that media communicate values (i.e. who participates in sports and who...

As part of their continued investigation of the reporting of the shooting of Michael Brown class members analyze photos of Michael Brown and the social media response to these images. The class then develops a guide they...

Eighth graders are exposed to different types of media in order to investigate the tendency of being exposed to a set of values that run contrary to conservative values. They role play a television program in order to communicate the...

Explore concepts of audience, purpose and symbols in this activity from Media Smarts that asks students to consider all the functions of music. Through a series of discussions and activities, your class will brainstorm possible functions...

Voting for the next president of the United States is about finding the candidate who most closely aligns with your own values and sense of democracy. High schoolers become acquainted with the candidates from the 2016 election with a...

Young scholars examine and analyze visual media and its messages critically. They determine whether specific media messages inform, entertain, or persuade and what factors influence the media. Using primary sources, they participate in...

Twelfth graders consider art as a medium to convey information and opinions on social conflict and issues. They analyze images from the Crocker Art Museum, discuss their effectiveness in raising awareness of an issue, and create a...

Students critically examine news articles and editorials for attitudes of discrimination and prejudice. Students then complete checklist in which they analyze news reports for context, content, point of view, language, graphics, and...

Middle schoolers discuss the relationship teenagers have with the television. In groups, they watch different excerpts from various television shows and note every instance of violence including children. They also discuss the...

Eight various activities have your learners looking at hype in the media. Advertisements for films, politics, music, and philanthropy all contribute to emotional appeals and marketing strategies trying to convince consumers to...

The odds are in your favor that your pupils will love this lesson that uses The Hunger Games to launch a study of gender empowerment, as well as the influence of social constructs of gender. Groups discuss how Katniss Everdeen and Peeta...

Students explore emotions represented in artwork.  In this cross curriculum social studies and art lesson plan, students explain examples of political and social issues expressed in artwork by Dorthea Lang, Diego Rivera, Dan Eldon,...

Learners examine the dangers associated with smoking. In groups, they discuss what it means to be addicted to a drug and how the media influences our decisions. After watching excerpts of films, they identify the use of smoking and the...

Malcolm X was a complicated man that few in white America understood. After sharing what they know or think they know about this civil rights leader, about nationalism and Black Nationalism, class members view a two-part documentary...

Students develop media literacy and critical thinking skills to analyze trends and determine the extent to which their decisions may be influenced by manipulation. They examine the mathematics of trends and write about a time they...

Students examine the ethical issues regarding the role of advertising in our society. They watch a series of ads, analyze the messages of the commercials, and in small groups create a counter-ad.

Students view a television program that explores the influence and importance of film's contribution to the rise of global culture. They discuss and write about the movies' influence in their own lives and compare and contrast different...

Learners access prior knowledge of vocabulary on feminism and psychoanalytic theory, and gender schema.  In this Empowered Barbie lesson, students recreate a Barbie doll.  Learners write a reflection on how they changed...

Track the transformation of Malcolm Little into Malcolm X and then into El Jajj Malik El-Shabazz with the second part of Make it Plain, a documentary on the famous civil rights activist. Viewers consider not only how events shaped and...

The message that buying things brings happiness is everywhere. Teenagers are not immune to this marketing strategy and benefit from reflecting on the relentless pressure to spend. This exercise invites young adults to consider the value...

Students learn about Columbian Folklore and make a mini documentary based on their own cultural background. In this culture lesson plan, students include Canadian cultural diversity in their presentation.