Language Arts · Grade 3 · Media Literacy: Understanding Our Digital World · Term 3

Media Has a Purpose

Discover that all media messages are created for a reason, whether it's to inform you, entertain you, or persuade you to do something.

TL;DR:Let's become media detectives! This topic helps your students uncover the secrets behind advertisements and posters to figure out who they are for and what they want us to do.

• Ontario Curriculum Expectations
• The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 1-8: Language, 2023 - Strand D. Comprehension: Understanding and Responding to Texts

About This Topic

This topic introduces Grade 3 students to a foundational concept of media literacy, which is a key component of language arts curricula across Canada. In a world saturated with digital and print media, it is crucial for young learners to understand that media messages are not neutral; they are constructed with a specific purpose and a target audience in mind. This unit moves beyond simple consumption of media to encourage critical thinking. By learning to deconstruct media texts, from television commercials to cereal boxes and movie posters, students begin to see the techniques used to capture attention and persuade.

The goal is to equip students with the analytical skills to ask important questions about the media they encounter daily: Who created this message? Who is it for? What does it want me to do or think? This exploration helps foster an awareness of their role as consumers and viewers. It aligns with provincial curriculum expectations that focus on developing students' abilities to understand, interpret, and create a variety of media texts, laying the groundwork for more complex media analysis in later grades.

Key Questions

1. Identify the main purpose of your favourite TV show: to inform, entertain, or persuade.
2. Explain how you can tell if an advertisement wants you to buy something.
3. Analyze a website for kids and determine its primary purpose.

Learning Objectives

• Identify the target audience for a variety of simple media texts.
• Describe specific techniques, such as colour, sound, and characters, used to attract a particular audience.
• Explain that media messages are created for a specific purpose, such as to persuade, inform, or entertain.
• Create a simple media message for a specific, intended audience.
• Distinguish between the overt and implied messages in a simple media text.

Key Vocabulary

Target Audience	The specific group of people that a media message is made for.
Media	Different ways of communicating with many people, like television, websites, books, and posters.
Purpose	The reason why a media message was created, for example, to sell something or to share information.
Technique	A special method or trick used by creators to make their message more appealing, such as using bright colours or catchy music.
Message	The main idea or information that the media is trying to share with its audience.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

Media is just for fun and doesn't mean anything.

What to Teach Instead

While media can be very entertaining, most messages also have a purpose, like selling a product, sharing information, or teaching an idea. The fun part is often a strategy to get you to pay attention to the main purpose.

Common Misconception

If I like an advertisement, it must be for me.

What to Teach Instead

You might enjoy an ad with a funny animal or a catchy song, but the creators might have a different audience in mind. For example, a car commercial might be fun to watch, but it's really aimed at adults who can buy cars.

Common Misconception

Everything shown in an ad is exactly what the product is like in real life.

What to Teach Instead

Advertisements often use special effects, perfect lighting, and other tricks to make products look as exciting as possible. It's important to be a critical viewer and think about what the product would be like outside of the ad.

Active Learning Ideas

Four Corners

Media Detective Agency

Students work in small groups with a 'case file' containing several print ads from magazines or websites. Using a graphic organizer, they must identify clues like colours, fonts, and characters to determine the target audience and purpose for each ad.

45 min·Small Groups

Four Corners

Design a Cereal Box

In pairs, students are assigned a target audience (e.g., toddlers, athletes, parents) and must design a new cereal box to appeal to them. They will then present their box to the class, explaining their choices for the name, colours, and mascot.

60 min·Pairs

Four Corners

Soundtrack Sleuths

Play short audio clips from different commercials or movie trailers without the visuals. Students guess the type of product or film and its intended audience based solely on the music, sound effects, and tone of voice.

20 min·Whole Class

Real-World Connections

• Noticing how cereal boxes placed on lower shelves in the grocery store often have cartoon characters to catch children's eyes.
• Choosing a birthday card for a friend by thinking about what colours, characters, and message that friend would like best.
• Understanding why the trailers before a kids' movie are for other kids' movies and toys.
• Recognizing that the ads that appear during a parent's news program are different from the ads during a Saturday morning cartoon.
• Picking a book from the library by looking at the cover to see if it looks like a story they would enjoy.

Assessment Ideas

Exit Ticket

Exit Ticket: Show the class a movie poster and ask them to write on a sticky note who the audience is and one clue from the poster that told them so.

Peer Assessment

Poster Project: Students create a poster for a school event (e.g., book fair, sports day) aimed at a specific audience (e.g., younger students or parents). They must be able to explain their design choices.

Quick Check

Two Stars and a Wish: After analyzing an ad, students share two things they did well (the 'stars') and one thing they could improve on next time (the 'wish').

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do toy commercials always show kids who look super happy?

They do that to connect the toy with feelings of happiness and excitement. When other kids see that, they think the toy will make them feel that happy too, and they are more likely to ask for it.

How can I find good, age-appropriate examples of media to show in class?

You can use children's magazines, packaging from toys or food aimed at children, and clips from trusted Canadian sources like TVOKids or MediaSmarts.ca. Always preview any content before sharing it with your students.

Are the creators of media trying to trick us?

It's less about tricking and more about persuading. They use specific strategies to make their product or idea seem as appealing as possible to their target audience. Our job as media detectives is to spot those strategies.