Tips and resources for news literacy, media balance, and healthy communication.
As we continue to work with the repercussions of the pandemic, many students, teachers, and families, are still reeling. A sense of anxiety—social or otherwise—is fairly pervasive as we continue to reintegrate.
To help reduce students' anxiety and your own, we've put together some ideas and resources focused on news literacy, media balance, and healthy communication. We hope they're helpful as you continue to navigate these challenging times.
Talk about it
Avoiding conversations about what's happening will only increase students' anxiety. It's important for kids of all ages to talk through what they're hearing and get developmentally appropriate information from a trusted adult. Helpful resources to try:
Focus on the facts
For many students, anxiety about the news they often can't help but see or hear about can emerge in all kinds of ways. Addressing topics with simple, age-appropriate facts can be helpful. Resources to try:
Build critical-thinking and news literacy skills
Social media can be a hotbed of rumors and misinformation -- even more so as people are acting and reacting from a place of fear or partisan interest. Guide students to credible news sources and encourage them to fact-check what they see on social media or hear from their friends. If you have time to add some news literacy instruction, consider teaching a lesson so kids can practice these skills. For older students, in addition to our digital citizenship lessons, we have a collection of short, video- and discussion-based news and media literacy activities. From our curriculum, here are some helpful lessons to try (modify for target grade as needed):
- Is Seeing Believing? (grade 3)
- Reading News Online (grade 5)
- Finding Credible News (grade 6)
- This Just In! (grade 8)
- Hoaxes and Fakes (grade 9)
- Challenging Confirmation Bias (grade 10)
- Clicks for Cash (grade 11)
- Filter Bubble Trouble (grade 12)
Model and encourage media balance
With round-the-clock news content coming from every direction, we may be compelled to keep up with the latest headlines. But a constant stream of updates can often end up making us feel more uncertain or even anxious, rather than informed. It's important -- for both you and your students -- to reflect on how your media use makes you feel. We can all reflect on our media choices and make adjustments to our media use accordingly. For younger kids, the issue may simply be more time on screens in general; older students may need help considering the types of media they're consuming. Here are some helpful lessons to try (modify for target grade as needed):
- Media Balance Is Important (kindergarten)
- Pause for People (kindergarten)
- How Technology Makes You Feel (grade 1)
- Device-Free Moments (grade 2)
- My Media Choices (grade 4)
- Finding My Media Balance (grade 5)
- Finding Balance in a Digital World (grade 6)
- Digital Media and Your Brain (grade 8)
- Social Media and How You Feel (grade 10)
- The Health Effects of Screen Time (grade 12)
Stay active and have some fun
When we're feeling worried or stressed, a little distraction goes a long way. Incorporating some physical activity into the school day can be a fun way to lighten the mood. From how-to dance videos to yoga for kids, you can find easy-to-implement activities to get students' bodies moving and their minds calm. Helpful resources to try:
- Movement Apps, Games, and Websites
- Best Health and Fitness Apps for Kids
- Wide Open School's curated picks for Fitness and Offline-Friendly activities
Support parents and caregivers
If parents and caregivers are stressed, kids are going to pick up on it. While it's not your job to manage parents' anxiety, it is important to be mindful of its impact on your students. Keep the lines of communication open as you deal with questions about your school's transition back to in-person instruction. And pass along resources and tips for parents and caregivers to help them deal with the uncertainty of the situation in a healthy way. Helpful resources to share:
- Help Your Family De-Stress During Coronavirus Uncertainty
- Apps and Websites for Improving Parent-Teacher Communication
- Wide Open School's Parent & Caregiver Guides
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Image courtesy of Allison Shelley/The Verbatim Agency for American Education: Images of Teachers and Students in Action.
