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Activity
Weebly

Mini-Media Literacy Project

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Encourage your pupils to think critically about media and the messages media portrays. Starting off with a quick-write about pop culture, this assignment launches into a hands-on, collaborative collage project. After creating collages,...
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Handout
ProCon

Social Media

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter—are they good for society? Pupils prepare for a class debate in which they voice their opinions on the issue. They read the main pro and con arguments, explore others' opinions, view videos, and discover the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Function of Music

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Explore concepts of audience, purpose and symbols in this lesson from Media Smarts that asks young scholars to consider all the functions of music. Through a series of discussions and activities, your class will brainstorm possible...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Media Violence - The Good, the Bad and the Future

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders define, identify, measure, and assess the level and impact of violence in media. The media forms evaluated include music, sitcoms, news, and other programs that are identified and shared by the class. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Media Literacy in Presentations

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers study the three types of mass media messages: visual media, written media, and audio media. After a class discussion which has them list examples of each, learners get into pairs and work on analyzing the "Four A's" in...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mixed Media Landscape Design

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders create mixed media representations of landscape designs in Africa and Asia. The lesson plan is great for cross-curricular projects with the Social Sciences and/or Literature, or can be used as a self-contained project. ...
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Defining Popular Culture

For Teachers 9th - 12th
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.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Popular Music and Music Videos

For Teachers 9th - 12th
This resource is part of a three-activity unit that introduces your class to the concept of popular culture and the role that it plays in their lives. Here, learners examine the importance of the music industry and music videos in pop...
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Lesson Plan
Boston Symphony Orchestra

The Elements of Music—How do Composers Plan?

For Teachers 5th - 8th
The introduction to Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake and the finale of his Symphony No. 4 provide young musicians with an opportunity to investigate the music elements composers employ to develop the themes they want to create. They compare the...
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Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

African American Music: Let’s Sing and Play Clapping Games

For Teachers K - 2nd
Two lessons focus on making a beat. Using popular African American music of its time, scholars listen and analyze the rhythm then recreate it with hands drums, and cups. 
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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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Unit Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian In Your Classroom: The Music in Poetry

For Teachers K - 12th
Take poetry off the page and put it into terms of movement, physical space and, finally, music with this series of three lessons from the Smithsonian Institution. This resource introduces students to two poetic forms that originated as...
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Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Making Media for Democratic Citizenship

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Pupils analyze global issues. In this video podcasting lesson plan, pupils research Internet and print sources regarding selected global development issues. Pupils plan and create video podcasts that feature their research findings.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Media Literacy Analyzed

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Fourth and fifth graders define the term media literacy, then come up with examples that they share with the class. The types of media studied are auditory, visual, and written. Learners get together in pairs and perform a media...
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Activity
Dallas Symphony Orchestra

Musical Families

For Teachers K - 5th
Planning a trip to the symphony? Prepare first-time attendees for the experience with overheads that identify the roles played by the concertmaster, conductor, musicians, and even the audience. The musical families are introduced and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

GUNS AND MUSIC

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine the role of the Advertising Standards Agency, the image of crime portrayed by some rap artists, the reality of crime, media influence, and society's influences on the media.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Paul Chan: 1st Light and 5th Light

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Paul Chan's latest exhibit includes seven manifestations of light. Today, kids analyze the pieces 1st Light  and 5th Light. They consider the concept of opposed or dualistic realities found in literature, society, and Chan's work. They...
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Unit Plan
Apple

A Curriculum for Digital Media Creation

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Consumer technology has made it possible for filmmakers to create entire movies from the comfort of their home computer. Guide high school film buffs through the process of designing a documentary with an extensive unit published by...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Media is the Lesson

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students work as a member of a creative team and develop a media campaign for a client.
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Lesson Plan
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Curated OER

Music: "Hearing Between The Lines"

For Teachers 7th - 12th
The class listens to and reads lyrics from popular songs that explore themes of self-esteem, body image, and eating disorders. The song interpretations will serve as a jumping-off point to deeper discussion on the issues, culminating in...
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Lesson Plan
Media Education Lab

Understanding Viral Messages

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Imagine advertising for a product but not being paid to do so. Welcome to the world of Viral Messaging. Class members first view a T-Mobile flash mob video that went viral and has been seen by over 14 million viewers. After analyzing the...
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Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

The Birth of an Icon: Learning and Performing the Origins of the Drum Set and Early Jazz Drumming in New Orleans, Louisiana

For Teachers 5th - 12th
Bass drum, snare drum, tom-toms, cymbals. Perched behind their drum sets, wielding their drum sticks and wire brushes, drummers lay the grove and are the heartbeat of a band's performance. A dynamic lesson introduces young musicians to...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Audio Media Creation and Exploration

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed
Students research historical people and events in their community and crate audio files that are shared in the form of locative media. In this audio media lesson plan, students give presentations in front of the class.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Images of America--Analyzing Music Videos

For Teachers 7th - 10th
Students compare the message of a songs lyrics to the images chosen to include in a video of that song, and search for deeper meaning in the choices.