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Media Literacy Beyond the Newspaper

Media literacy is a set of skills that help people to analyze, evaluate, and create messages in a wide variety of media modes, genres, and formats. This week we feature a collection of resources to help you teach students media literacy skills, how to separate fact from fiction, and more. 

Grades K-12

Media Literacy

If you only have time to look at one resource this week, THIS is the one! In this selection, discover media literacy resources for all grade levels. Each review includes a description and tech ideas to help you find the right tool for your needs.

Grades K-12

OK2Ask: Fostering Accountability: Media Literacy in the Classroom

If media literacy is new to you, this is a GREAT place to start your exploration. This archived virtual workshop shares the basics of media literacy, plus tips and tools. The resources page for the session offers even more to explore.

Grades 6-12

Media Smarts

Especially for your secondary students, this tool offers lessons and resources searchable by grade, subject, and media type. Download lessons in PDF format using the links provided. Discuss media bias towards gender and other age-related issues.

Dive Deeper - Digitally Speaking

As students grow, it is important to help them take a closer look at various forms of media and to learn how to decipher truth from fiction. Use these sites and tools, ideal for secondary students, to strengthen media literacy skills with lessons, videos, interactives, and more.

Grades 7-12

MediaLit Moments

Engage your students with these brief, yet focused, lessons on media literacy and social media. Each consists of key questions related to core concepts using video and online materials. Activities related to the topic are provided for students to explore.

Grades 7-12

World Press Freedom Map

Register at Newseum (FREE) and use this map to teach the meaning of free press. Explore the map to see where varying degrees of free press exist in the world today and lead a discussion about free press vs. partly free press.

Grades 9-12

R4S: Research for Success

Share this interactive online course with your high school students to help develop the sophisticated research skills needed for careers and college. This site presents the formal research process in six steps and includes media literacy information.

Accessibility & Media Literacy

Make online media more accessible with tech tools that remove distractions, read text to students, and help to organize online reading.

Grades K-12

Reader

Help your students get organized and save research. This device agnostic tool (available as both a web tool and app) enables you to save articles without a lot of the clutter. Sign up with your email and password, activate your account, and get started.

Grades K-12

Text to Speech Reader

Give your weaker readers the option to listen to the story. Instantly convert your text to speech with a simple drag, upload, or pasting of your text. You can control the speed of the speech replay. Easily save to your computer using the upload button.

Grades K-12

Text Mode

Help keep your students focused, by removing the distractions! Text Mode removes all information from web pages except text. You can convert distracting and hard to follow web pages into simple and clean black and white text with the click of a button.

This Week at TeachersFirst

April 23rd is World Book & Copyright Day. Share your thoughts about when students should start to learn about copyright rules in our weekly poll. On April 24th, attend our OK2Ask® workshop to learn about tech tools for effective student feedback. And, discover 18 educational apps for the iPad in this week's featured blog post.