Media Smarts
Marketing to Teens: Alternate Ads
Did you know that Coke can teach the world to sing in perfect harmony? Learners develop an awareness of more subtle, less obvious methods advertisers use to reach consumers. Included is a list of related lessons available on the Media...
Curated OER
Advertising and Healthy Decisions
Students analyze alcohol and tobacco ads and create parodies of them. The eight lessons in this unit include discussions about why teens smoke or drink, the psychology behind the advertising, and writing persuasive letters to agencies,...
Media Smarts
Television Broadcast Ratings
Explore the relationships between programming, advertising, and the ensuing rating wars. Help develop the media smarts of your pupils through this examination of advertisers for popular shows. Although the included Sweep Chart features...
School Improvement in Maryland
Evaluating Political Advertisements
How do interest groups try to influence elections? As part of their study of the election process, groups view 30-second advertisements produced by advocacy groups and use the provided worksheet to evaluate these ads. They then craft...
Curated OER
Understanding the Influence of the Media
Critically analyze advertising techniques, such as circular reasoning, bandwagon, testimonial, and repetition, with worksheets that effectively discuss and illustrate how the media aims to influence.
Curated OER
Lesson Plan 4: Political Advertising
Students observe a political advertisement and evaluate the views promoted in the ad. After exploring governmental policies, students create their own 30-second ad to promote a specified cause and publicize their views. Students share...
Media Education Lab
Defining Propaganda
21st century learners live in a media world. Help them develop the skills they need to be able to analyze the barrage of propaganda they face daily, with a resource that introduces them to the type of persuasive appeals found in news,...
Missouri Department of Elementary
R-E-S-P-E-C-T: A Basic Skill
Imagine seventh graders developing a school wide plan to promote respect in their school. That's the vision behind the second lesson in the R-E-S-P-E-C-T series. In preparation for designing a school-wide media campaign, class members...
MENSA Education & Research Foundation
Media Literacy
Young learners today are bombarded by media manipulation. Help them develop the skills they will need to become savvy 21st century media consumers with a unit on media literacy.
Curated OER
What's All the Fuss?
Students investigate why air quality is important. In this environmental lesson, students research air quality and create an infomercial that explains why air quality is important. Students use video cameras to record their presentations.
Curated OER
Self-Esteem, Advocacy, Media Literacy
Learners recognize their strengths and personality traits. As a class, they discuss and brainstorm qualities a professional organization may look for in a company representative. They observe a commercial and determine the intended...
Curated OER
Government Lesson Plan: Lesson Plan 4
Pupils analyze how interest groups present their viewpoint to the public. They assess how media can influence public opinion by closely examining a political ad from the 1964 presidential election.
Curated OER
Recognizing Propaganda - Unreliable Testimony
Students investigate how product endorsements can be a form of propaganda. They analyze various shampoo ads, discuss celebrity endorsements and unreliable testimony, and create a written non-propaganda ad for or against a celebrity...
Curated OER
Create a Youth Consumer Magazine
To underscore the importance of being informed consumers, kids check out youth consumer magazines and websites and then create their own. Although no detailed plans are included in the resource, it is packed with ideas and suggestions.
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...
PBS
Stories of Painkiller Addiction: Prescription Drug Abuse Awareness Campaign
The I-STOP law was designed to regulate the distribution and tracking of prescription drugs. After reading an article about its signing and implementation, middle and high schoolers work together to come up with their own ideas for an...
Curated OER
What's Being Done?
Students explore the concept of animal welfare. In this philanthropy lesson, students examine legislation that supports animals in their state as well as the role of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals....
Curated OER
RESPECT -- A Basic Skill
Seventh graders are shown a variety of advertisements and commercials and note the product being sold. As a class, they compare and contrast their answer to the actual product. To end the lesson plan, they discuss whether or not they...
Curated OER
A Modern Connection to Genocide
Students investigate the genocide that occurred in Rwanda. They read and discuss an article, watch a Frontline video, complete a worksheet for the video, and write a letter to the Rwandan government or United Nations about the...
Curated OER
Personal Development (Substance Abuse Prevention)
Tenth graders demonstrate an ability to access support in the home, school, and community to deal with substance abuse problems. They also evaluate responses to pressure regarding substance use and abuse.