Grade 8 Media Literacy - Mr. Sclater's class!

1. This is the module where your participants will complete individual activities and maybe work with a partner - students are continuing their knowledge-building and contributing to collaborative documents to continue the online learning process! Activities may require partners to peer review or participate in discussions to develop understanding while collaboratively building knowledge.

1.1. Students will learn to utilize media platforms to communicate to a specific demographic/audience, and analyze media texts that have been created by others

1.2. FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT: Create a twitter page comprised of ten tweets as a character from The Great Gadsby, the book we have previously read as a class. Focus on keeping the voice and personality of the character true to the text, while also adding a modern flair.

2. This is the icebreaker module - students are getting to know each other and engaging in activities that build community to begin the process! The individual formal assessment may be described here - if it intended to be completed throughout the unit lessons.

2.1. Students will gain the fundamental ability to navigate and demonstrate basic skills using various online media modules (platforms) efficiently.

2.2. Advertisement strategies in the media will be intoduced

2.3. FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT: Post powtoon link to group discussion; Identify an advertisement they have encountered in social media or media that was subliminal

3. Overall Expectation: Students will be able to create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques

3.1. Students will be able to identify conventions and techniques appropriate to the form chosen for a media text they plan to create, and explain how they will use the conventions and techniques to help communicate their message (e.g., conventions in advertisements for a product to appeal to different age groups among the students: text, images, “free offer” promotional gimmicks; techniques: use of age-appropriate content in all elements of the advertisement) (p. 149)

3.2. Students will be able to produce a variety of media texts of some technical complexity for specific purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques (p. 149)

4. Lesson 1: Introduction to Media Literacy Conventions and Techniques

5. Lesson 2: Exploration and Analysis of Media Text

6. SUMMATIVE TASK: Students will demonstrate their ability to understand their audience and tailor an advertisement to them by choosing an appropriate platform and presenting the initiative. In previous classes they have been exposed to how advertising can manipulate us such as through propaganda, so this activity will involve an advertisement that is intended to improve equity in our society. They can create this advertisement on any platform they have been exposed to in the previous three lessons or a platform of their choosing as long as they get approval from the teacher first. Students will post their advertisement to google sites. This media text will be created for a diverse audience, using critical media literacy and social justice! Remember, these media texts should be successful in reflecting equity and inclusion.

7. This is the wrap up activity module - students will need to document their learning for the course objective as well as the lesson. These activities selected for this module prepare the students to complete the assessment.

7.1. Students will become more equipped with the tools and knowledge they need to create their own digital literacy presentation for a given topic, related to a social equity issue, for a specific audience and on a certain platform

8. This is the collaborative activity module - students will work together in small groups to complete a learning activity! Each ‘group result’ of the learning will need to be reported back to the whole group! Activities may require partners to participate in discussions or collaborative work to demonstrate understanding.

8.1. Students will be able to use higher-order thinking skills in regards to real-life media literacy, and critically analyze the author’s intended purpose and how it may affect their own lives.

8.2. FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT: Google Forms/Quizzes - The students will need to use higher-order thinking skills to evaluate and critically analyze a real-life media text. The students’ individual achievement in this quiz will allow me to gauge how well they were each able to learn the material for the third module and their overall understanding of the topic in general.

9. Lesson 4: How to Create a Media Text for a Given Topic, Audience, and Platform

10. Lesson 3: Critical Analysis of Media Texts (Higher-Order Thinking)