Introducing TV Families - Lesson
This lesson encourages children to explore the differences between their real families and TV families by imagining how their own families might be portrayed on a television show.
What do Halloween costumes say?
This activity, adaptable across grades, is designed to help students look critically at the Halloween costumes marketed to them.
The Anatomy of Cool - Lesson
This lesson helps students become more aware of the media's role in determining what, and who, are perceived as being cool.
Exposing Gender Stereotypes - Lesson
This is the first of three lessons that address gender stereotypes. The objective of this lesson is to encourage students to develop their own critical intelligence with regard to culturally inherited stereotypes, and to the images presented in the media - film and television, rock music, newspapers and magazines.
Media Kids
In this lesson, students deconstruct gender portrayal and depictions of boys and girls in the media. They begin by looking at the appearance and mannerisms of boys and girls in TV, movies, ads and comic books and identify any stereotypes that are used. In a series of group activities, students explore gender stereotypes and representation in greater depth, as well as compare these representations to their own life experiences.
The Blockbuster Movie - Lesson
This lesson introduces students to the phenomenon of the“blockbuster” movie – its history,characteristics and influences. Students will also explore the role of audience in the creation of a “blockbuster” and analyze their own responses to current blockbuster films. Students will learn about the process involved in turning a film into a blockbuster by devising promotional campaigns for an imaginary movie.
Advertising All Around Us - Lesson
This teaching unit helps students to become more aware of the language and techniques used in print advertising, as well as the impact of advertising on their daily lives.
Prejudice and Body Image
This lesson lets students take a good look at our society's pressures to conform to standards of beauty - particularly to be thin - and the related prejudice against being "overweight".
Perceptions of Youth and Crime
In this lesson students develop an awareness of the ways in which public perceptions regarding young people have been affected by media portrayals of youth violence and youth crime.
The Constructed World of Media Families
In this lesson, students identify the differences between TV families and real families by analyzing the conventions used by TV shows; and by comparing the problems and actions of television families to real world families.