media-literacy

= Media Literacy =

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**Internet4Classrooms**
Helping students, teachers & parents use the Internet effectively. Activities are separated by grade level, & cover PreK through 12 th grades.

**SMART Web Searching Binder**
A LiveBinder full of information on tips & tricks for web searches, & student friendly search engines. Information literacy deals with not just Internet safety, but also conducting web searches. There are tips & tricks used to find the information you & your students are looking for, than checking the first ten pages of a Google search. One of the biggest issues when it comes to the web & education is the access & reliability. Information literacy is essential to teach our students. This binder is full of what can be fakes, evaluation of websites, good web searching strategies, Google & other search engines (educational & kid friendly).

WebCHECK
This came across my desk (aka my inbox) earlier this month & as a librarian I was excited but also a bit skeptical about a site, which purported to evaluate websites for students & teachers. The fact that it was created by The Center for Digital Literacy at Syracuse University & funded by a Institute of Museum and Library Services SPARKS! Ignition Grant gave some indication of its merits.

The evaluation tool allows you to select a checklist for professional, senior, middle or junior users - this determines the number & complexity of the evaluation questions. After you answer the questions it generates a report offering analysis of how stimulation, meaningful, organized, & ease of use – complete with charts and graphs.

This is an excellent tool for getting students to think critically about the content they are accessing. The site also offers lesson plans for incorporating WebCHECK into your instruction. I like that this tool provides prompts & stimulates thinking, but doesn’t assume entirely responsibility for approving or denying the use of a specific website – the human evaluator is ultimately making the judgments.

//Last Updated - May 2014//