Teaching MEDIA LITERACY SKILLS in a Fake News World

Presented by Kristen Mattson
Outstanding School Library Expert and National Presenter

Specifically Designed for School Librarians/Media Specialists, Social Studies Teachers, English/Language Arts Teachers and Library Aides Serving Grades K-12

Practical strategies to help students effectively navigate diverse media resources for accurate, up-to-date, factual information
Proven methods for teaching essential media literacy skills while avoiding heated or uncomfortable discussions
Innovative approaches for relevant and timely learning that builds media literacy skills that can be utilized across the curriculum
Receive an extensive digital resource handbook with practical strategies and resources

Practical Ideas and Strategies

We all know the role misleading claims, fake news, and false statements play in our society, so how do we incorporate learning about them in our classrooms without chaos, outbursts, or angry parent phone calls? How do we understand the art and science behind what our media organizations do to increase likes and clicks? How can we teach about bias without our own bias seeping through? In this timely NEW seminar, award-winning school librarian, KRISTEN MATTSON will help you better understand how and why media plays such a critical role in all of our lives. You'll learn proven ways to more effectively teach critical media literacy skills in your classrooms and libraries, so you are better equipped to lead your students through savvy dissections and informed discussions.

You'll leave this seminar with an abundance of timely, proven ways to help your students assess diverse media sources enabling them to make decisions and formulate opinions based on factual, accurate and up to date information.

Ten Key Benefits of Attending

Identify the Hot Buttons of Using the News in our Classrooms and Libraries
Identify the hot buttons and tricky areas in today's news so you can be better prepared to address them with your students
Make the Connection Between Media Literacy and Citizenship
Media literacy may be one of the most important things we can teach students, starting at an early age and leading up to our oldest students as they prepare to vote … Learn practical ways to help your students make informed decisions and opinions based on factual information
Navigate Difficult Conversations
Learn ways to lead difficult discussions so they are productive, civil, safe, and most importantly, factual
Understand How Social Media Drives News Consumption
Understand how social media drives our news consumption based on our time spent reading, our likes, and our clicks … Learn proven ways to better help students understand why they see what they see
Identify Charged Words in Headlines and Articles
Most news organizations are very intentional about which words they use in their headlines … Help your students understand the implicitness of word choice so they are equipped to dissect articles for bias
Discover the Critical Role Responsible Media can Play in our Units
Incorporating media into our practices does not have to be "one more thing." We can use these strategies to meet the never-ending demands of our curriculum and standards … Here's how
Explore the Best Resources That Help Students Access Credible Media
Discover the best resources that will help students of all ages access media that is age-appropriate and credible
Utilize Questioning to Encourage Students to Dig Deeper
Learn classroom-proven ways questions can be used to drive deeper student discussion and remove yourself from the "sage on the stage" position, allowing for deeper discovery and a greater knowledge base
Learn How to Read Horizontally and Vertically to Check for Facts
If we see something that seems too good or bad to be true, there are methods we can use to read across and down into sources to discover what is accurate and true … Here's how
Receive an Extensive Digital Resource Handbook
Each participant will receive an extensive digital resource handbook with detailed descriptions of the practical applications and helpful resources presented during the seminar

Outstanding Strategies You Can Use Immediately

Proven ways to talk about critical issues in the classroom safely and responsibly
How to recognize and avoid your own biases in discussions with students, staff and parents
Why media literacy and teaching about fake news is an investment in our citizenship
How to help your students "fact check" any media source
Proven methods for encouraging students to access and assess diverse media sources
How social media uses algorithms and echo chambers to promote falsehoods
Practical strategies to help your students understand the difference between facts and opinions
How media sources use charged words in headlines and articles to implicitly mislead
Proven ways to help students identify misinformation and disinformation
How to recognize when quotes and data are cherry picked to promote false information
Effective ways to authentically include media into your units
How to help your students consume and produce media responsibly
Practical strategies for using questions with students to drive deeper research
Strategies for reading and researching horizontally and vertically to assess the accuracy of media information
How and why different news sources structure their articles certain way

A Message From Your Seminar Leader

Dear Colleague:

I became an educator 20 years ago because I believed in the voice of our students. But in recent years, it has become alarmingly common for my students to use their voices armed with inaccurate information. While research and media literacy have always played an important role in my classroom and library, it has become increasingly important that our practices must evolve with the media which has become partisan, click baiting, and often driven by social media.

It's been my experience that many teachers and librarians feel unprepared to explore these topics because of the potential conflict that could arise, but I have found that with the right approaches, we can have productive, analytical, respectful conversations about what is in the news, how it is written, and why.

My goal in this seminar is to show you the "how and why" media is created and help you feel confident with implementing meaningful and impactful media literacy strategies. Our students expect that if something is important, we will address it in our classrooms and libraries. They trust us. After attending this seminar, I hope that you will have greater trust in yourself in providing excellent resources and using these strategies with your students.

I look forward to meeting you at the seminar.

Sincerely,
Kristen Mattson

P.S. Teaching research and media literacy is an act of citizenship and I am grateful to share proven ways to help you and your students on this journey!

Who Should Attend

School Librarians/Media Specialists, English/Language Arts, Social Studies Teachers, and Library Aides Serving Grades K-12

Special Benefits of Attending

Extensive Digital Resource Handbook
Each participant will receive an extensive digital resource handbook giving you access to countless strategies. The handbook includes:

Lesson plans and ideas to immediately implement in your classroom and library
Examples of misleading and accurate information side by side
Lists of digital resources for you to access after the seminar

For in-person seminars, registrants will also receive a printed copy of the resource handbook as long as their registration is received in the BER office at least 15 calendar days before the event.

Share Ideas with Other Educators
This seminar provides a wonderful opportunity for participants to meet and share ideas with other educators interested in strengthening their media literacy program.

Consultation Available
Kristen Mattson will be available at the seminar for consultation regarding your questions and the unique needs of your own program.

On-Site Training Guarantee

BER is not a booking agency that just finds a presenter who presents on the topic you requested. Rather, we only recommend highly experienced BER presenters who have consistently received outstanding evaluations from educators attending their trainings.

Consequently, we provide a strong program guarantee.

We guarantee you'll be fully satisfied or you'll owe us nothing after your on-site training event.