** NEW: Registration open for PLS National CMD Course that starts October 7, 2025. See brochure ×
Skip to main content
Tips: Put Phrases in "Quotes". Use plus to require additional +terms. Use minus to omit additional –terms. Use | for an OR search

Your Search Results (101) sorted by newest

  • Lessons (90)
  • Professional Development (11)

Football and Concussions: the NFL vs. Scientific Research

In this media literacy activity students analyze short video clips from an investigative documentary TV program, a feature film, and a congressional hearing for messages about the impact of football on brain disease to assess credibility in film representations of historic events.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

Middle School, High School, College

30-60 Minutes

Documentary Film, Feature Film, News - Video, Television Program, Television Commercial, News - Video
Subject Areas
Health, Film/Video Arts, Journalism, Life Sciences, US History And Government, US History, Civics And Government, Sociology, Physical Education

Freedom Fighters or Terrorists?

Media literacy and critical thinking lesson comparing media representations of Afghani fighters before and after the 9/11 attacks in two documentary films.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

High School, College

30-60 Minutes

Documentary Film, Television Program
Subject Areas
Film/Video Arts, Journalism, Global Studies, Sociology

Fruit Juice vs Fruit Snacks and Fruit Drinks

Media literacy and critical thinking lesson teaching students to discriminate between real fruit and fruit snacks and between real juice and fruit drinks by decoding TV commercials

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

Lower Elementary

15-30 Minutes, 30-60 Minutes

Television Commercial
Subject Areas
Health, Commercial Arts/Advertising, Nutrition, Consumer Education

GMOs: Bias and Credibility in Media Messages

Students analyze three web videos from corporate, academic and activist sources for messages about genetically modified organisms, techniques used to sway the viewer, and questions about credibility and one’s own confirmation biases.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

High School, College

30-60 Minutes

Web Video, Animated Film, Web Video
Subject Areas
Health, Film/Video Arts, Consumer Education, Life Sciences, Environmental Studies, US History And Government, US History, Civics And Government, Economics, Sociology, Library/Information Literacy

High Fructose Corn Syrup? Is There a Problem? Who Says?

Students analyze a commercial from the Corn Refiners Association, a blog post from an industry-supported group and an article from the Union of Concerned Scientists for messages about the health impacts of high fructose corn syrup, the spread of scientific misinformation and how funders influence media messages.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

High School, College

30-60 Minutes

Blog Post, Informational Text, Television Commercial, Webpage
Subject Areas
Health, Film/Video Arts, Commercial Arts/Advertising, Nutrition, Consumer Education, Life Sciences, Economics, Sociology, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy

How False Statistics Spread in the Digital World

In this media literacy activity students analyze a newspaper headline and photo, a tweet, an academic journal and a university survey for messages about the spread of false information via different media sources.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

High School, College

30-60 Minutes

Informational Text, Magazine, News - Print, Photograph, Social Media
Subject Areas
Journalism, Sociology, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy, Technology/Digital Media

How Much Fruit is in this Drink? How Can You Tell?

This is a media literacy and critical thinking activity in which students decode juice containers for messages about health and nutrition.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

Lower Elementary, Upper Elementary

15-30 Minutes

Illustration
Subject Areas
Health, Commercial Arts/Advertising, Nutrition, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy, ELA/English Language Arts

Hydrofracking, Media, and Credibility

Media literacy and critical thinking lesson analyzing the credibility of messages about hydrofracking as presented in video clips, diagrams and online searches.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

High School, College

Over 60 Minutes

Documentary Film, Illustration, Informational Text, Television Program, Webpage, Web Video
Subject Areas
Health, Visual Arts, Film/Video Arts, Physical Sciences, Environmental Studies, Economics, Sociology, ELA/English Language Arts

Incan Religion – What Sources Should I Use?

In this media literacy activity students analyze excerpts from different media documents – a young adult fiction book, a Wikipedia article, a Twinkl education page, a magazine article, a tourism webpage, a documentary film and an animated children’s film – to assess the credibility and usefulness of each source for research on Incan religion.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

Upper Elementary, Middle School

30-60 Minutes

Animated Film, Blog Post, Documentary Film, Informational Text, Literature, Magazine
Subject Areas
Global Studies, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy, ELA/English Language Arts

Internet Messages About Toys: What’s the Purpose?

In this media literacy activity, students analyze a toy commercial, an educational video and a clip from an animated film for messages about the purpose of media messages.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

Lower Elementary

15-30 Minutes

Animated Film, Web Video, Television Commercial, Animated Film, Television Commercial, Web Video
Subject Areas
Film/Video Arts, Commercial Arts/Advertising, Consumer Education, Economics, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy, ELA/English Language Arts

Lemmings: Documentary Film Clip Decoding

Media literacy and critical thinking lesson reflecting on the influence of the media on people's beliefs about science and teaching ways to check the validity of questionable claims.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

Middle School, High School, College

15-30 Minutes

Documentary Film
Subject Areas
Film/Video Arts, Life Sciences, Sociology, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy, ELA/English Language Arts

Mapping the Border: Who Decides?

This is a media literacy and critical thinking activity in which students analyze different maps of the U.S. Mexico border region for messages about how mapmakers use images and words to convey messages.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

Middle School, High School, College

30-60 Minutes

Illustration, Map
Subject Areas
Visual Arts, Commercial Arts/Advertising, US History And Government, US History, Civics And Government, Global Studies, Sociology, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy

Marketing OxyContin: Profits, Lives and Disinformation

Media documents are excerpts from a company memo from Purdue Pharma, an investigative reporting video, an online article and two government reports related to the marketing of OxyContin. Students analyze messages about the role of industry in fueling the opioid epidemic and the credibility of the media documents.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

High School, College

30-60 Minutes

Informational Text, News - Print, News - Video, Web Video
Subject Areas
Health, Commercial Arts/Advertising, Journalism, Consumer Education, US History And Government, US History, Civics And Government, Economics, Sociology, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy

Mass Shootings: Tracking the Numbers

This is a media literacy and critical thinking activity in which students decode a blog post, a fact checking website and an article in a national magazine for messages about sourcing and credibility.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

High School, College

30-60 Minutes

Chart/graph, Editorial Opinion, Informational Text, Webpage
Subject Areas
Health, Math, Journalism, US History And Government, US History, Civics And Government, Sociology, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy

Media Bias Charts: Who’s Rating What?

In this media literacy activity students analyze 4 charts on the political bias of different news sources with background information on the authors and methodology for each chart, to reflect on credibility, political bias in the media, the student’s own confirmation biases, and extremist views on the Internet.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

High School, College

30-60 Minutes

Chart/graph, Informational Text
Subject Areas
Journalism, Consumer Education, Sociology, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy

Misinformation About COVID-19: How to Figure It out

In this media literacy activity students analyze videos for messages about what to do about misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

High School, College

30-60 Minutes

Blog Post, Editorial Opinion, News - Video, Television Program, Web Video
Subject Areas
Health, Psychology, Journalism, Consumer Education, Sociology, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy, Technology/Digital Media

More Commercials & Their Tricks

Media literacy and critical thinking lesson will teach the purpose of a commercial and wording tricks advertisers use to sell their products

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

Lower Elementary

30-60 Minutes

Television Commercial
Subject Areas
Commercial Arts/Advertising, Consumer Education

Political Memes and Bias: What Resonates, What’s True and What Do We Share?

Students analyze political memes about Trump and Biden to think about their purpose and target audience, how to determine their accuracy/credibility, and to reflect on their own biases and critical thinking.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

High School, College

30-60 Minutes

Informational Text, Photograph, Social Media
Subject Areas
Commercial Arts/Advertising, Journalism, US History And Government, US History, Civics And Government, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy, ELA/English Language Arts

Presidential Photo-Op and Political Protest: Who’s Telling the Story?

In this media literacy activity students analyze and compare a short video produced by the White House and a longer news report by MSNBC on President Trump’s photo-op in front of St. John’s Episcopal Church on June 1, 2020 during nationwide protests against police brutality and racism.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

High School, College

15-30 Minutes

News - Video, Television Program, Web Video
Subject Areas
Film/Video Arts, Journalism, US History And Government, US History, Civics And Government, Sociology, General Media Literacy, Library/Information Literacy

Raptors in the Media

Students analyze a book cover, a magazine cover, a tweet, a poster, a website and a YouTube screen shot for messages about media forms, osprey, eagles and condors and environmental concerns.

Please be patient. This download may take while depending on your internet connection
preparing files...

Lower Elementary, Upper Elementary

15-30 Minutes

Illustration, Informational Text, Magazine, Photograph, Poster, Social Media, Web Video
Subject Areas
Life Sciences, Environmental Studies, General Media Literacy, ELA/English Language Arts