Satires may be designed to expose a bias to ridicule but if misunderstood can they reinforce that bias? Langston Hughes poem, “Minstrel Man” opens a discussion of racist stereotypes, the minstrel tradition, and the musical, “The...

Being able to recognize patterns, craft generalizations, and draw conclusions based on information in a text passage are essential critical thinking skills. Encourage learners to hone these skills with a worksheet that asks them to read...

Pupils confront age-related stereotypes, explore how stereotyping impacts their lives, and discuss how they can make changes to reduce over-generalizations, unfair assumptions, and critical judgments about people groups. They use a...

The activities in a lesson about stereotypes teach middle schoolers about the dangers of one-perception fits-all thinking. Participants learn how to check their perceptions by identifying ways to avoid stereotyping, like getting to know...

Timshel! Thou mayest! is the big idea in a lesson that reminds learners that they have choices about how they present themselves to others. To begin, individuals rate the degree to which the choices they make each morning are influenced...

Six powerful and eyeopening lessons provide scholars with activities designed to challenge stereotypes and discrimination. The unit provides reading material with which pupils read and discuss. Grand conversations lead to physically...

Stereotyping leads to prejudice. That's the central concept in a lesson designed for eighth graders. After identifying the traits associated with different stereotypes, class members brainstorm actions they can take to stop stereotyping.

Students analyze a collection of advertisements or photographs in a text or magazine and identify the stereotypes used or possible biases of the editors. They discuss how these stereotypes are formed, and the ways in which they impact...

Students view headshots of people representing different ethnic groups, draw and color bodies and clothing they feel best represents each headshot, and observe drawings made by classmates. Students then identify and discuss stereotypes,...

John Hughes' The Breakfast Club takes center stage in a lesson about annotating nonfiction texts to keep track of evidence that may be used later in discussions and writings. Scholars consider the stereotypes and conflicts presented in...

Encourage your students to think about how and why people and categorized in terms of social class. They decide what "class" they belong to, and then brainstorm about the indicators that society uses to define class and to categorize...

Make your scholars more aware of stereotypical portrayals in film and television. Discuss the definition of "stereotypes" and how they are used to present a story. High schoolers look at specific television shows and complete a chart...

Use some provocative modern art to get your class considering stereotypes and the impact they have on us all. Your class will discuss the print art Indian Look-Alike by Melanie Yazzie and stereotypes in general before...

Ninth graders brainstorm words they typically use to label each other, discuss effects of labeling, including reinforcement of stereotypes, and experience potentially harming and limiting effects that labels have by participating in...

Home Sweet Home is the theme of a unit comprised of extra support lessons. Scholars reinforce concepts through chants, grand discussions, and practice worksheets. Topics include digraphs, blending phoneme, long vowels, final sounds,...

The focus of the second lesson in the Standing Up for Democracy unit is on the power of assumptions based on a single experience or point of view. Class members begin by journaling about assumptions others make about their identity based...

What is identity? What is bullying? What is identity-based bullying? After discussing these questions as a class, pupils engage in partner discussions before participating in a small group activity to act out bullying scenarios. Then,...

High schoolers recognize and modify generalizations. They challenge generalizations made about people, insist on knowing the evidence that supports these, and be willing to modify their own generalizations when confronted by evidence...

Help young learners identify and break down stereotypes with this these lessons and worksheets, which discuss expectations placed on others based on such factors as gender, race, and sexual orientation.

Make your students critical consumers of media, and foster an awareness of how culture is reflected and shaped by media. This resource covers how alcohol advertising presents and promotes gender stereotypes. After a discussion on...

Combine a lesson on the elderly with grammar instruction. Before viewing a series of provided video clips, class members brainstorm a list of words related to senior citizens and organize these words into categories that correspond with...

Students study weather patterns and learn to make decisions based on the weather. In this weather lesson, students plan a potluck based on the weather. Students use a decision tree to brainstorm about the activity. Students complete a...

Young historians discover the life of an incredible African American woman who, as an anti-slavery lecturer prior to the Civil War, defied stereotypes of what women could accomplish. Pupils explore the concept of stereotyping, read...

Social issues of gender and media stereotypes, begins with a multi-sensory experience. Learners view the painting Backlash Blues and make critical comments based on what they see. They then read the Langston Hughes poem and listen to the...