The Ontario Ministry of Education has published a number of documents under the title Guides to Effective Instruction.

Released in 2008, Volume 7 of the Guide to Effective Literacy Instruction (Gr 4-6) covers media literacy.

It contains 8 detailed lessons for making and analysing a variety of media texts including PSA's, creating and reading a website, etc. You can download the whole document here. If you are a junior teacher, there is enough information in this document to fill your whole Media Literacy program for the year!

The document is broken down into three parts:

CHAPTER 1: AN OVERVIEW OF MEDIA LITERACY IN THE JUNIOR GRADES

CHAPTER 2: APPROACHES TO TEACHING MEDIA LITERACY

CHAPTER 3: SAMPLE LESSONS.

There is a lot of great information contained within the different sections. For teachers, and for the purpose of this blog, I’ve pulled out the 8 sample lessons. Some deal with media analysis and others deal with media creation.

Lesson #1 (Media Analysis): Deconstructing Movie Ads    

                                   

Lesson #2 (Media Analysis): Detecting Bias in a Television Newscast

Lesson #3 (Media Creation): Creating a Storyboard for a Public

                                            Service Announcement       

                                                                                    

Lesson #4 (Media Creation): Creating a Brochure  

Lesson #5 (Media Analysis): Reading a Website 

Lesson #6 (Media Analysis): Analysing Music Lyrics

Lesson #7 (Media Creation): Creating a Website

Lesson #8 (Media Creation): Designing a Movie Poster

  

Online resources

The appendix lists a large number of online resources. There are some old favourites in the list as well as some that were new to me. Here they are:

Association for Media Literacy

AML introduces visitors to the importance of media education. You will find

information on resources and upcoming events as well as critical perspectives on

media trends and issues.

http://www.aml.ca

Brand Hype

Brand Hype is a web-based resource focusing on product placement in the movies.

The site is intended as an educational resource and information exchange for students,

media literacy advocates, media researchers, moviemakers, and moviegoers. It includes

articles, videos, and an annotated bibliography.

http://www.brandhype.org/MovieMapper/index.jsp

British Film Institute

BFI offers opportunities to experience, enjoy, and discover more about film and moving

image culture.

www.bfi.org.uk

Cartoons in the Classroom

Follow this link to the teachers’ guide for using the Professional Cartoonists’ Index

website in your classes. The site’s lesson plans show how you can use editorial cartoons

as a teaching tool at all levels.

http://cagle.msnbc.com/teacher/

CBC

The site offers streaming audio and video as well as transcripts of programs, interviews,

and historical archives.

www.cbc.ca

Centre for Media Literacy

The site helps visitors to access, understand, analyse, and evaluate the powerful images,

words, and sounds that make up our contemporary mass media culture.

http://www.medialit.org

Concerned Children’s Advertisers

CCA campaigns include nationally televised Public Service Announcements and

curricula for children from K-8, as well as tips and tools for parents and community

workers. It also includes videos and lesson plans.

http://cca-kids.ca

English Language Arts Network

ELAN is a professional organization of Ontario educators, providing curriculum

leadership in English, language arts, and media education.

www.elan.on.ca

Internet Archive

This site provides a digital archive of video, audio, music, games, and texts.

http://www.archive.org/

Kids’ Take on the Media

This site describes the impact of media in Canadian children’s lives and what our

young people have to say about the topic.

http://www.ctf-fce.ca/bilingual/PUBS/ctfreport/kidsenglish.pdf

Library and Archives Canada-Learning Centre

This centre is a resource for students and teachers; it contains a collection of primary source

documents.

http://www.collectionscanada.ca/education/008-120-e.html

Media Awareness Network

The network offers practical support for media education in the home, school, and

community and provides food for thought on our rapidly evolving media culture. It

also explores ways to make media a more positive force in children’s lives.

http://www.media-awareness.ca

Media Ed

This site is designed for teachers, students, and anyone interested in media and moving-

image education at all levels.

www.mediaed.org.uk

National Film Board for Kids

NFBKids offers entertaining and educational activities for junior students, from

science adventures to online animation.

http://www.nfbKids.ca

Newseum

This site provides a collection of front pages of newspapers from around the globe,

updated daily.

www.newseum.org

Newspapers in Education

This site provides lessons based on the Ontario curriculum and is designed to be used at

any time of the year.

http://www.newspapersineducation.ca/

PBS Teacher Source: Media Literacy

This site provides ideas and resources for media literacy education, with U.S. content,

including video and movie clips.

http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/media_lit/media_lit.shtm

Read Write Think

This is a source for lessons and resources in reading and language arts instruction.

http://www.readwritethink.org

Report Card on Canadian News Media

This report represents the first independent national survey of Canadian attitudes

toward the news media and media credibility.

http://www.cmrcccrm.ca/english/reportcard2004/01.html

News Sources for Junior Students

Scholastic News Online

This is a source for news and information on current events, designed especially for

students in Grades 3-6.

http://teacher.scholastic.com/scholasticnews/

BBC Newsround

Newsround provides news of interest to students from the U.K. and around the world.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/

Time for Kids

Time magazine presents news for kids.

http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/