It is more important than ever that 21st-century learners develop the skills they need to become savvy consumers of media. Young learners locate and identify reliable sources of information with a helpful media lesson.

A lesson plan instills the importance of locating reliable sources. Scholars are challenged to locate digital sources, analyze their reliability, search for any bias, and identify frequently found problems that make a source unusable. 

That's not what I said! My message did not arrive in the correct order! Introduce the concept of packets and the transmission control protocol used to send and receive information over the Internet. The class participates in an...

Fair, balanced, and reputable information? There's an acronym for that! Scholars learn the E.S.C.A.P.E. method for evaluating news sources. Then, pupils work in small groups to read and analyze a news story and discuss the activity to...

Take a look at the credibility of online sources such as Wikipedia. Discussion points and handouts are included to facilitate a meaningful and informative dialogue. Tips are given on how to determine if a Wikipedia article is reliable...

Reliable news stories are based on facts from reliable sources. Young journalists learn how to evaluate the reliability of news sources by watching a short explainer video. Teams apply their new source-digging skills to a current news...

Draw back the curtain, add a spot of joy to your class, and let learners be lesson planed by a close reading exercise that models how to develop an interpretation based on evidence drawn from a text. Robert Browning’s dramatic monologue...

Though it isn't a novel activity to prepare onion cell and Elodea plant cell slides as examples of cells in a microbiology unit, this resource will leave you thoroughly prepared. As pupils examine the slides that they prepare, they draw...

Getting back to the beginning of the unit, learners use reactions with red cabbage juice to determine if solutions are acidic, neutral, or basic. This is a straightforward and classic investigation, but what you will appreciate is the...

Students research the events surrounding the Alamo in 1863, and explore the differences between primary and secondary sources of information. They brainstorm lists of items used to research a subject and categorize them as primary or...

Where do anti-immigrants myths come from, and how can they be refuted? Learners critically analyze media reports and how to identify reliable sources. After studying a timeline that details the history of US nativism, groups research the...

Crystals are more than meets the eye! Can learners tell them apart simply by observation? As they examine five samples with a magnifier, they find that appearance alone is not enough. This serves as an introduction to a mini unit on...

Here is a phenomenal language arts lesson on media literacy for your middle and high schoolers. In it, learners produce a research product in the form of a public service announcement (PSA). First, they view examples of these PSA's to...

Accuracy, transparency, trustworthiness, and impartiality are four unspoken rules of journalism. Scholars delve deep into the subject by discussing the pros and cons of relying on social media for news. They also play an online game to...

Five important tenets of any social studies class are available for young historians with a poster that defines history as an account of the past. It encourages learners to question reliability of an author's perspective, as well as...

It's easy to find information at the click of a mouse, but is it trustworthy? Pupils learn about the E.S.C.A.P.E. acronym for evaluating sources. Next, learners read a news story and evaluate its sources to determine credibility. Last,...

The beauty in this resource is the lengthy list of highly charged, controversial-issue research topics. Categories include issues of race, politics, law, environment, education, athletics, gender, and technology. After selecting a topic,...

How do I get where I'm going from here? The fifth of six college and career readiness lessons invites seventh graders to dig deep into the career of their choice. Once they complete their research, individuals relate their findings to...

Sometimes it's hard to escape bad information! Pupils learn the E.S.C.A.P.E. method for evaluating news sources and complete a worksheet to assess a news article using their new skills.

This lesson starts out with a guided discussion about the statement "Birds fly in the sky; airplanes fly in the sky; therefore, airplanes are birds" and goes on to cover logical fallacies and reliable sources, relating these to the topic...

Sparknotes provides this 10-question quiz on research methods in psychology. It includes questions on validity, single-blind and double-blind experiments, bias, and more. Test-takers submit their answers electronically for immediate...

Internet suffers could drown in the volume of information available on line. Here's an activity that can be a lifeline and buoy confidence in middle schoolers' ability to find reliable information and credible sources. After reading...

Data is a powerful tool that your class can use for both good and evil! Help your classes become knowledgeable consumers of information through a game-based exploration. Learners examine a method of determining the reliability of a...

A lesson dives deep into reference materials. The class begins with a discussion of which resources are best used for specific purposes and how to identify ways to get the needed information. Learners share information about the internet...