At its core, a game is constructed from several essential components: a defined Goal (the end state players are trying to reach), Rules (the formal structure establishing what can and cannot be done), Obstacles (elements preventing easy goal achievement) and a Core Dynamic, "the main action of a game, what the player does most of the time in order to reach their goal(s)."[1]
Here are three tips to help you find good information about health and science topics.
If the source is a person, start by checking that they really exist and that they are a genuine expert on that topic. Both doctors and scientists are usually specialists, so make sure that the source has credentials in the right field. A surgeon won’t necessarily be an expert in physics, for instance, and vice versa.
This outcome chart contains media-related learning outcomes from the Saskatchewan, Grade 3 Social Studies curriculum, with links to supporting resources on the MediaSmarts site.
Many curricular expectations in Alberta Social Sciences courses relate to media and digital literacy. The role of the Social Sciences courses in the Alberta curriculum is described as follows on the Alberta Education Social Sciences page:
Many curricular expectations in Manitoba Psychology courses relate to media and digital literacy. The following excerpt from Grade 12 Psychology (2010) detail how media and digital literacy have been integrated into the curriculum:
Demonstrate an understanding of graphic arts through investigating the history, the present, and potential innovations in the future
b. Research and demonstrate a personal and shared understanding of the need for graphic arts as communication.
d. Explore a variety of media (e.g., websites, books, advertisements) to identify components of effective graphic design
There’s no denying that being online can have negative effects, for adults and children. At the same time, we are living in a digital age where being online has become threaded into our everyday lives with various effects, some positive and some not so much.
Journalism is guided by a set of norms that reflect its aspirational role in society, though these norms are constantly debated and challenged. There are standard practices that guide how the industry works.
MediaSmarts’ research shows that on average, Canadian youth spend 1-2 hours per day using digital devices each weekday (not counting time spent using them for schoolwork) and more than three hours per weekend day. Average weekday screen time, therefore, falls just within the range recommended by the Canadian Pediatric Society’s Digital Health Task Force, though weekend screen time does not. Other research has found that more than a third (37 percent) of Canadian youth exceeded screen time recommendations in 2023. There are often significant differences, though, between how much time we think we’re spending on media and how much time we actually spend.