iCivics
Lesson 2: Misinformation
Fake news is a hot topic right now ... but what is it? Intrepid young investigators track down the facts that separate journalistic mistakes and misinformation through reading, research, and discussion. Part three in a five-lesson series...
Anti-Defamation League
Understanding and Analyzing “The U.S. of Us” by Richard Blanco
Current immigration issues and the rhetoric surrounding the controversies come into focus with a lesson that uses Richard Blanco's anthem, "The U.S. of Us," written after the August 2019 attack in El Paso, Texas, to open a discussion of...
Curated OER
Listening and Speaking Skills, Strategies, and Applications
Twelfth graders summarize a speaker's purpose and point of view. In this speaker's purpose lesson, 12th graders watch a video clip from one of the major morning news programs to observe the speaker's point of views. Students determine...
Curated OER
In the News
Pupils research a report using a local or national news story. They exchange reports with a partner in order to examine an issue. They work together to create a report on a global issue.
PBS
Amid Rising Economic Inequality, Does America Need a Third Reconstruction?
Young political scientists investigate the Poor People's Campaign protest held in Washington, D.C., on June 18, 2022. They research how the event was reported in various news outlets and consider their stance on whether "poverty is...
Newseum
The Women Who Made the Movement
Granting women the right to vote was a long time coming and took many efforts. Young historians select one woman involved in the suffrage movement to research. They compare and contrast the depictions of their subject in mainstream and...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
History of Immigration Through the 1850s
Everyone living in the United States today is a descendant from an immigrant—even Native Americans. Learn about the tumultuous history of American immigration with a reading passage that discusses the ancient migration over the Bering...
Curated OER
Bias in Journalism
Pupils evaluate the credibility and reliability of various sources. Students survey the coverage of a particular event in different newspapers, select a current event and compare different perspectives. They write an article...
Willow Tree
Data Sampling
Some say that you can make statistics say whatever you want. It is important for learners to recognize these biases. Pupils learn about sample bias and the different types of samples.
Curated OER
Bias
Learners apply techniques of distinguishing between fact and opinion. Students identify words associated with persuasion and argument. Learners read and categorizer a variety of newspapers and articles. Students identfy bias in a...
Curated OER
Bias vs. Perspective: An Inevitable Aspect of Journalism?
Students explore the types of media that U.S. teens prefer the ways in which viewers identify and account for journalistic bias. They explore the ways in which media shapes one's opinion or affects their judgment.
Curated OER
Focus on the Media
Learners 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...
Curated OER
Using a Graphic Organizer to Critically Observe Televised News Broadcasts
Students compare two television news broadcasts. They discuss how to organize information when comparing two objects and read and discuss two books to create a Venn diagram to compare both books. After creating the diagram, they view...
iCivics
Mini-Lesson B: Satire
Hey, what's so funny? Explore the use of satire in a variety of media with a hands-on instructional activity. Fourth in a five-part journalism series from iCivics, the activity introduces satirical language in print and online. Pupils...
Committee for Children
Students Learn to Stop Rumors Before They Start
Two activities look at how rumors are spread and ways class members can stop them. The first activity brings forth an in-depth conversation about how reporters gather information to write articles and how students can implement the same...
Media Education Lab
Propaganda Techniques
In an age of fake news, alternative facts, and biased reporting, it is more important than ever that 21st century learners develop the critical-thinking skills necessary to recognize, analyze and resist the propaganda techniques used in...
Newseum
Reporting Part III: Staying Objective
The third and final activity in the Reporting series tests young journalists' ability to be objective in reporting contentious topics. After brainstorming a list of contentious topics that interest them, the class selects one, and...
Curated OER
Reporting War: a Comparison of News Reports on Vietnam And Operation Enduring Freedom
Young scholars research how television news shows reported on the War in Vietnam. They describe how television news shows reported on the Iraqi War and compare the two coverages. They contrast how are they similar and how they are ...
Facing History and Ourselves
Hands Up, Don't Shoot!
Why is it so difficult to develop a clear understanding of the events surrounding the shooting of Michael Brown by a Ferguson, Missouri, police officer? To answer this question class members listen to a NPR discussion of the findings of...
Curated OER
Newspaper Writing on Flight in History
Students read about important events in history through newspaper articles. In this newspaper lesson, students look at different writing styles and author's bias in different articles about the same event. They write their own articles...
Curated OER
Stonewall and Beyond: Gay and Lesbian Issues
Help learners understand their own biases and how their perspectives may have been influenced by biased media sources. They keep a journal while viewing videos, exploring websites, and engaging in class discussions related to gay and...
Curated OER
Getting the News about the Stamp Act
Learners review opinions of the Stamp Act as stated in colonial newspaper articles of the 1760's. They compare colonial newspapers to those of today. They take a side regarding the Tax Act and write a note to a friend explaining their...
Curated OER
Fact Or Opinion
Groups of junior highers find newspaper articles which contain both facts and opinions, and present examples of each to the class. The focus is on discerning between fact and opinion. Two excellent worksheets are embedded in the plan...
Curated OER
Slanted Sentences
Students examine biased words in news articles, suggest synonyms, then rewrite the sentences to demonstrate how word choice can alter meaning.