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Violence in the Media

Main Core Tie

Health Education I (7-8)
Strand 3: SAFETY AND DISEASE PREVENTION (SDP) Standard HI.SDP.3:

Time Frame

1 class periods of 45 minutes each

Group Size

Small Groups

Life Skills

  • Thinking & Reasoning
  • Communication
  • Character
  • Social & Civic Responsibility

Authors

Cindy Baker
DEBORAH DICKSON
CATHERINE PETERSON

Summary

In small groups, students will define violence and discuss different examples of violence in the media. Each group will then share its definition and examples with the class, the teacher will then conduct the activity: "Taking a Stand on Media Violence". After the activity, the small groups will then discuss different ways of dealing with violence in the media and share ideas with the class.


Materials

Attachments

  • Take_a_Stand_on_Violence_in_Media.pdf
    In this activity students are required to "take a stand" about issues of violence in order to demonstrate how we all carry different perspectives and understandings


Background for Teachers

Websites

  • Commonsense Media
    This site provides lots of background information concerning violence in the media.


Intended Learning Outcomes

Students will identify different forms of violence in the media. They should assess their own attitudes toward violence and consider what is acceptable and what is not. Students will consider the possible effects of violence in the media and discuss ways of dealing with the problem.


Instructional Procedures

I. Class Discussion:

What words are associated with the word VIOLENCE?
What actions are associated with the word VIOLENCE?

II. Small Group Discussion:

Organize students in small groups and have them write their own definition of VIOLENCE.

Have each group share its definition with the class.

III. Class Activity

Valuing Different Views: Taking a Stand on Media Violence (pdf)

IV. Group Work

Students in each group can choose to keep the definition they wrote before the activity or change their definition.
  1. The teacher can share the dictionary definition of VIOLENCE:
    • exertion of physical force so as to injure or abuse.
    • intense, turbulent or furious and often destructive action or force.
  2. Groups will identify different forms of violence in media.
    • computer/video games
    • videos/television
    • news
    • pornography
    • hate web sites
    • others (from students)
  3. Assign each group one media form to discuss and decide how they can combat the violence in that area. Have each group share with the class.
V. Homework Writing Assignment

Each student will explore the web site below on their own and write a one page essay on what form of media they consider to be the most violent and identify what effect they feel it has on society.


Strategies for Diverse Learners

Gifted Students can research the extension website and prepare a short presentation on information found there. Rather than write definitions of violence, struggling students might tell what they consider to be violent behavior.


Extensions

Websites


Assessment Plan

Attachments

Students should explore the information on the Common Sense web site and the information and then write a one page essay on what form of media they consider to be the most violent and explain what impact they feel it has on society.


Created: 10/26/2009
Updated: 01/15/2020
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