MEDIA LITERACY Fact, Opinion, or Misrepresentation? GRADE 5-6 Teacher Guidelines Instructional Pages Activity Page Practice Page Homework Page Answer Key ▶ ▶ ▶ ▶ ▶ ▶ pages 1 – 2 pages 3 – 6 pages 7 page 8 page 9 pages 10 – 12 Classroom Procedure: 1. Display the following question: What is media? 2. Allow for response and discussion. Ask the students: Can you trust everything you read online? Headlines are titles of articles. Pick the headline that is one to a real story: 1) A Ghost Is Caught Stealing Bagels From A Local Bakery 2) 101 - Year - Old Man Finishes Marathon 3) Werewolf Buys $500 Glasses So He Can See The Moon 3. Allow for response and discussion. Introduce the Media Literacy content page to the class. 4. Distribute the Media Literacy: Fact, Opinion, or Misrepresentation? Content page. Read and review the information with the students. Save the final questions for the lesson closing. Use the Additional Resources to enhance understanding in and out of the classroom. 5. Distribute the Activity page. Read and review the instructions. Allow time for completion. 6. Once completed, have students share their answers with the class. 7. Distribute the Practice page. Check and review the students’ responses. 8. Distribute the Homework page. The next day, check and review the students’ responses. 9. In closing, ask the students: Why is it important to understand the media and what you read online? Why should you be careful when you post on social media? 10. Allow for response and discussion. Lesson Title: Media Literacy: Fact, Opinion, or Misrepresentation? Subject: Language Arts Approximate Grade Level: 5th and 6th Objectives: Students will learn about the different media outlets that touch their lives daily. Students will learn that they cannot trust everything they see or read online. Students will learn how to distinguish facts from fiction and how to use media positively. Students will be able to explain how the media helps them understand a specific topic. State Educational Standards* LB.ELA-LITERACY.SL.6.2, LB.ELA-LITERACY.SL.6.3, & LB.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.8 Class Sessions (45 minutes): 2 class sessions Teaching Materials / Worksheets: Media Literacy Content page (3), Activity page (2), Practice page (2), and the Homework page (3). Student Supplies: Pencils, pens, paper, access to the internet, computer devices such as a tablet, laptop, desktop, or phone Prepare Ahead of Time: Copy handouts. Options for Lesson: Students love playing interactive games on the internet! One favorite is Jeopardy. Go to Factile at https://www. playfactile.com/factandopinion17 or Room Recess at https://www.roomrecess.com/mobile/ FactAndOpinion/play.html and enjoy these easy to play classroom games. Jeopardy Labs at https://jeopardylabs.com/play/fact-and-opinion4 has several interactive games as well. *Lessons are aligned to meet the education objectives and goals of most states. For more information on your state objectives, contact your local Board of Education or Department of Education in your state. 1 Teacher Notes The lesson introduces students to the importance of media literacy. Students will learn how to determine if the information is credible. If the sources of the story are reliable, they can be trusted. As part of the learning activities, students will begin to learn how online posts can be misinterpreted and potentially damage a person’s character and integrity. 2 Media Literacy: Fact, Opinion, or Misrepresentation? What is Media? Media is a communication term that describes different outlets that reach large audiences. Many individuals think that the media just consists of television and the radio; however, many media forms reach different audiences. This also includes print media like books and articles, and the Internet and social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and Tik Tock. Many people, not just people your age, are impressionable when it comes to viewing media. People tend to believe what they read and hear. They think the gossip they listen to their friends talking about at lunch, read on Twitter and see on the evening news is probably accurate, believable, and credible. After all, no one would put something on social media or other media that has not been vetted and is inaccurate. This becomes an issue because what you see and read may, unfortunately, not be the absolute truth. The result is by not checking the accuracy is a person will spread a wrong message to friends and others on social media. You may have the best intentions and not mean to post unproven material online, but that does not excuse you from the consequence of something you post. It is up to you to know what the truth is. This can be difficult, but it is your responsibility to publish accurate information online if you use social media. 3 What is Fake News? How do I know if something is not real? No doubt you have heard of the term fake news? You may not be completely clear on what it is. Fake news includes media with untruthful stories to advertise a product, describe something inaccurately, or a ‘made up’ story designed to confuse or hurt someone. It also includes viral pranks and hacks used to spread lies. This term has been used to describe media that is not one hundred percent accurate in truth. That is why it is important not to believe everything you see and hear first glance or first read. Equally important is that you do not share information that is questionable or may not be factual. By sharing less than accurate information, you are participating in fake news. Many media consumers cannot tell when media is fake or real because they assume that it has been checked for validity or truth on a news organization or on social media. That is not always the case. Social media’s accuracy has become problematic because anyone can post something on media, whether it’s truthful or not. It is up to each user to check out the information we read. 4 Media Literacy: Fact, Opinion, or Misrepresentation? How to Distinguish Fact from Fiction Spotting inaccuracy in media can sometimes be challenging and takes work. To do this, you need to think critically about the media’s messages and do some research to see if the source of information is credible. Credible means that the source of information is well known has experts providing the information, and has a reputation for reporting accuracy. Here are some simple steps: 1. Critical Thinking and Critical Reading - You will need to become a precise reader, and at times, you may even have to re-read something. 2. Ask Questions - When reading or viewing media, you need to ask yourself the question “What does the author of the source want me to do or how do they want me to think or feel?” 3. Spot Bias - Look for any bias, which means prejudice that favors one particular side over the other. See if you can spot any wrong information or information that is stereotyped based on one specific group of people. Completing these steps may be time-consuming at first, but this will help you sift through the negatives and find the truth in what you are reading and viewing. This will also help you find credible information when working on an essay or project in the classroom. We are all Digital Citizens What does it mean to be a good digital citizen? Being a good digital citizen entails doing the right thing, following rules, and treating others with respect. You are used to this, as teachers and parents hold you up to this standard. You are a good citizen in the real world, but are you a good citizen online? With media, especially the Internet, all around us, it is hard to find a balance between the real and online world. 5 Who are you online? Are you the same respectable person you portray yourself to be in real life? Or do you pretend to be someone else? Do you always try to only share accurate information? Or, do you spread inaccurate information like rumors or unverified statements? Do you post items on your accounts that you are confident are not embarrassing to yourself, family, or friends? Or, do you post online things that may make someone look bad and embarrass them? One way to think of this is before your post anything online, ask yourself this question. If someone was posting this comment about my family or me, would I find it embarrassing or hurtful? Another question you want to ask before sharing or publishing information is if this piece of information was sent to me by someone, would I use it or act on it without first checking it out? Understand every time you post, you leave a digital footprint! The term digital footprint explains a map or a trail that follows what you do online. What you did two years ago and posted on Facebook will still be there even though you hit the delete button. This includes posted inappropriate messages and pictures, as well as cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is bullying that occurs online. Posting gossip, rumors, or hurtful language online is a form of cyberbullying and, in some states, illegal. Cyberbullying is as harmful as other forms of bullying. If this happens to you or you see it happen, it needs to be reported right away. Key Ideas About Media and Media Literacy Don’t believe everything you read or hear! Check to make sure the source of information is credible. Do some research to find out if what you are reading or posting is accurate or correct. Never post anything online that might embarrass you or another person. Every time you go online, you leave a digital footprint. Online posts don’t disappear or go away when you press the delete key. They can be traced back to the original source by their digital identities. Be a good digital citizen by being respectful of others. Treat others online like you want to be treated! 6 Activity Name __________________________ Date _________ Instructions: In groups, read each headline. Choose the headlines that are not accurate and explain why. Provide evidence (cite the source) of where you found the information proving or disproving the headline. Which one is the real story? - “Einstein said, “Don’t Believe Everything You See On TV!” - “Teenager Live On Mars” - “Boy Rescued After Tongue Gets Stuck To A Frozen Pole” Which one is the real story? - “500-Year-Old Cell Phone Was Found In The Ancient Pyramids.” - “Mom Calls Police Because Her Son Was Playing Video Games Too Much” - “The President Of Canada Visits China” Which one is the real story? - “Woman Calls Police Because She Heard Intruders - Turns Out To Be Squirrels” - “Researches Say Candy Is The Healthiest Snack” - “Tap Dancing Snake Won A Gold Medal In The Pet Olympics” Which one is the real story? - “Cat Learns To Whistle And Is Now Heard In Taylor Swift Songs” - “Calgary, Canada’s Capital, Has The Highest Number Of Puppy Adoptions” - “Bear Was Lured Out Of The House By A Mother’s Song” Which one is the real story? - “The State Of Canada Bans Straws And Balloons” - “Niagara Falls Is Running Out Of Water And Will Be Dry Next Year” - “A Man Was Bitten By A Snake, Racoon, and Shark In His Lifetime” 7 Practice Name __________________________ Date _________ Instructions: Find a news article on the Internet about something that interests you. After reading the article, fill out the questions below to determine the validity of the source. Title of the Article - ____________________________________________________________________ What was the news story about? - ________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Who wrote this article? Who are they? What are their qualifications? (You may need to look up this information.) _________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ How was this article made? Does it use evidence? Interviews? __________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Why was this article written? Is it important? Why or why not? ___________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ When was this article written? Is it current? _________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ What is this article missing? _____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Is this article credible? Explain why it is or is not in detail. ______________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ 8 Homework Name __________________________ Date _________ Instructions: Read each scenario. Choose three. Thinking about your digital footprint and digital citizenship, write a paragraph explaining why these posts may be inappropriate. Scenario # 1 - At the basketball game, you and a teammate had a disagreement. The coach saw what happened and decided to bench the other person. After the game, your teammate sent you irate text messages. You try to text back, defusing the situation, but it doesn’t help. The text messages continue, and they get worse with curse words and threats. What do you do? Scenario # 2 - You get Snapchats from someone you do not know. They say they go to your school and they seem to know a lot about what you like and what you do after school. The person seems to know some of your teachers. They ask you for some pictures and more information about you. What do you do? Scenario # 3 - One of your friends tags you in a picture, but you don’t feel comfortable with the posted photo. It makes you feel strange, and it doesn’t reflect who you are as a person. You notice that there are many comments on the picture, and several people are making fun of you. What do you do? Scenario # 4 - A lot of your peers make a fake profile about one of your classmates. It contains some horrible pictures of them that were taken without their permission. On the site, there are also made up stories about them as well. People ask you to share this site with them. What do you do? Scenario # 5 - When doing some research, you click on a link, and it takes you to a wildly inappropriate website. You try to go back, but it won’t let you, and the screen appears to be frozen. What do you do? Scenario # 6 - One of your friends comes to you and shows you instant messages that are threatening and inappropriate from other classmates. Your friend is very upset and wants your advice. What do you do? Scenario # 7 - You wrote an inappropriate post about your teacher because you were very mad at her. You deleted it two hours later, knowing it was wrong; however, many people took pictures of it and sent it to the principal. What do you do? 9 Practice Answer Key Name __________________________ Date _________ Instructions: Find a news article on the Internet about something that interests you. After reading the article, fill out the questions below to determine the validity of the source. Answers will vary. Discuss with the class. Title of the Article - ____________________________________________________________________ What was the news story about? - ________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Who wrote this article? Who are they? What are their qualifications? (You may need to look up this information.) _________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ How was this article made? Does it use evidence? Interviews? __________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Why was this article written? Is it important? Why or why not? ___________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ When was this article written? Is it current? _________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ What is this article missing? _____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Is this article credible? Explain why it is or is not in detail. ______________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ 10 Homework Answer Key Name __________________________ Date _________ Instructions: Read each scenario. Choose three. Thinking about your digital footprint and digital citizenship, write a paragraph explaining why these posts may be inappropriate. Answers will vary. Scenario # 1 - At the basketball game, you and a teammate had a disagreement. The coach saw what happened and decided to bench the other person. After the game, your teammate sent you irate text messages. You try to text back, defusing the situation, but it doesn’t help. The text messages continue, and they get worse with curse words and threats. What do you do? Example Response: What the teammate is sharing is inappropriate. You should immediately show your parents the text messages the roommate is sending. The teammate was bullying her peer, and this is inappropriate. Scenario # 2 - You get Snapchats from someone you do not know. They say they go to your school and they seem to know a lot about what you like and what you do after school. The person seems to know some of your teachers. They ask you for some pictures and more information about you. What do you do? Example Response: You may have friends with people online that you don’t necessarily know well offline or possibly at all (for example, you may follow a musician). Just because the person knows about the school doesn’t mean that they know you. Anyone can Google simple information, be tagged into, or look at publicly posted social media pages. A person can view posts about you that your friends have made. Unless you know the person in real life, you should delete other people you do not know. This could become dangerous, and the person that is pretending to be your friend could want to harm you. Scenario # 3 - One of your friends tags you in a picture, but you don’t feel comfortable with the posted photo. It makes you feel strange, and it doesn’t reflect who you are as a person. You notice that there are many comments on the picture, and several people are making fun of you. What do you do? Example Response: It is inappropriate for someone to tag you without your permission. You should contact the friend right away and ask them to please get rid of the picture and explain how it made you feel. Scenario # 4 - A lot of your peers make a fake profile about one of your classmates. It contains some horrible pictures of them that were taken without their permission. On the site, there are also made up stories about them as well. People ask you to share this site with them. What do you do? Example Response: It is inappropriate to create a fake profile (in some states, against the law) about someone. It is not right to read it as well because this is a form of cyberbullying. You should not share the website with anyone. The person should go tell an adult to let them know that this is happening. Scenario # 5 - When doing some research, you click on a link, and it takes you to a wildly inappropriate website. You try to go back, but it won’t let you, and the screen appears to be frozen. What do you do? Example Response: Sometimes, when doing research, websites that we think are appropriate are not. That is not your fault. First, turn off the computer monitor or block the screen so others can not view the inappropriate material. Then, immediately report this to an adult or teacher. They will probably have to shut down and restart the computer or have a person in technology come to resolve the problem. 11 Homework Answer Key Name __________________________ Date _________ Scenario # 6 - One of your friends comes to you and shows you instant messages that are threatening and inappropriate from other classmates. Your friend is very upset and wants your advice. What do you do? Example Response: The friend is being bullied online. It was great that your friend came to you with this information. Tell the friend to tell their parents and the school, make sure they do this. Again, in many states cyberbullying is a serious offense and possibly a crime. Scenario # 7 - You wrote an inappropriate post about your teacher because you were very mad at her. You deleted it two hours later, knowing it was wrong; however, many people took pictures of it and sent it to the principal. What do you do? Example Response: It is never right to post negative comments about a person. Just because the message is deleted doesn’t make it right. Remember, every time you post something online, you leave a traceable digital footprint. Deleting doesn’t mean the post is completely erased. More than likely, as soon as you posted or hit the send button, several people you shared with will have already seen the post. Notify your parents immediately and apologize directly to my teacher. 12
