Comic Book Characters

In this lesson, students learn how shapes are used in character design in comics and animation and look at how male and female characters are depicted in comic books. Using a Comic Book Analysis sheet, students will record the attributes of male and female comic book characters. As a class, students will record common patterns and discuss what messages about men and women are communicated. Students then design a comic book character that uses shapes to communicate what they think a real hero is.

Comics, Gender Representation, Stereotyping

Violence in Sports

In this lesson, students explore the gratuitous use of violence in sports.

Sports, Television, Violence

Favourite Sports and Athletes: Introduction to Sports Media - Lesson

This lesson develops a beginning awareness by students of how they feel towards, and respond to, different sports, and how the media represents athletics.

Diversity in Media, Gender Representation, Marketing & Consumerism, Sports, Television, Violence

Secure Comics

In this lesson, students read an interactive online comic that teaches them key concepts and skills relating to three cybersecurity topics: malware, passwords and privacy from geotracking devices. Following this, students research their own cybersecurity topics and learn how non-fiction comics are made in order to create their own Secure Comic.

Comics, Cyber Security, Digital Citizenship, Intellectual Property

How to Talk To Your Kids About Body Image During the Olympic Games

In ancient times the Olympics were a time when all nations – all Greek nations, anyway – would put away their differences and compete in almost every human activity, from poetry to the ferocious no-rules wrestling event called pankration. Being the very best that humans could be was seen as the best way to honour the gods of Olympus. Though we’ve dropped the poetry and the blood sports, people watching the swimming or volleyball events might wonder if we're on the way to bringing back the ancient tradition of competing in the nude. Revealing outfits – like those designed by Lululemon for the Canadian beach volleyball team – may be practical for those events, but they also shine a light on how dressing for sports can make us feel about ourselves. After all, it's hard to feel good about your own body when you've just spent an hour watching the most perfect physiques in the world nearly naked.

Body Image, Gender Representation, Journalism & News, Parents, Sports, Television

Talk Back! How to Take Action on Media Issues

Talk Back! How to Take Action on Media Issues gives you the tools to talk back to media companies.

Digital Citizenship, Diversity in Media, Food Marketing, Gender Representation, Journalism & News, Marketing & Consumerism, Movies, Music, Parents, Sports, Stereotyping, Television, Video Games, Violence

Lights, Camera, Action! Making Media in the Classroom, Made Easy

Matthew Johnson

For nearly thirty years, Canadian teachers have been at the forefront of getting students online and preparing them to use networked technologies safely, productively and responsibly. Many young Canadians have their first experiences with the internet in their classrooms and school libraries. Over the past decade, though, while digital tools have come to provide new opportunities for creating and distributing digital content, MediaSmarts’ research shows that most Canadian teachers aren’t making media in the classroom.

Comics, Digital Citizenship, Internet & Mobile, Media Literacy 101, Media Production, Movies, Professional Development, Resources, Video Games