Resources for Teachers - Finding and verifying information

How to search the internet effectively

Search Engines

Internet search engines are a big part of how we find things online. You can get the most out of them by learning how they work, and how to use them quickly and effectively.

Mixed Signals: Verifying Online Information

In this lesson, students examine two websites about unlikely animals and learn how to effectively evaluate online sources. They then create a fake website that demonstrates the misleading signals that are often mistakenly taken as signs of reliability.

Break the Fake Lesson Plan: Verifying information online

In this lesson, students participate in a workshop that teaches them four quick, easy steps to verify online information. After practicing these four steps they create a public service announcement aimed at teaching one of these steps and spreading the message that it is necessary for everyone to fact-check information we see online every time we are going to share it or act on it.

How to tell fact from fake online: A Reality Check Guide

The internet is like a giant library that catalogues millions of new publications every second. But how do you know if what you’re reading is fiction or non-fiction?

Information Sorting

This is the second lesson in the Critical Thinking Across the Curriculum series, though it can also be delivered independently. In it, students are introduced to the idea of using information sorting to determine whether sources are worth their attention and then to do critical close readings of those that are. After learning and identifying the differences and similarities between the two steps, they learn the characteristics of a reliable source and make a list of companion texts that can be used to determine if a source has those characteristics. After practicing that process, they learn some examples of critical close reading skills and use a possibility grid to do a close reading of a news article. Finally they plan, carry out, and reflect on an information sorting process to make sure they are getting a full and accurate picture of the news story’s topic.