Slide deck for teachers - Digital Skills for Democracy | Elections Canada's Civic Education

Slide	Title	Text
1		Digital Skills for Democracy
2	Inquiry Question	How can we find out if information about elections or political issues is something we can trust?
3	Minds On	True or false? Shakespeare invented the name “Jessica.” Answer: True.
4	Minds On	True or false? Hippo milk is blue. Answer: False. It is pink.
5	Minds On	True or false? Mammoths were still alive when the Egyptians built the Great Pyramid of Giza. Answer: True.
6	Minds On	True or false? Scientists have found 100,000 golf balls in Loch Ness. Answer: True.
7	Minds On	True or false? The Canadian Space Agency invented the Dust Buster vacuum cleaner. Answer: False.
8	Minds On	True or false? The first owner of the Mona Lisa hung it in his bathroom. Answer: True.
9	Minds On	True or false? Sonic the Hedgehog’s middle name is Maurice. Answer: True.
10	Minds On	True or false? The magnetic field at Magnetic Hill, New Brunswick makes cars roll uphill. Answer: False. An optical illusion makes it look like cars are rolling uphill when they are actually rolling downhill.
11	Minds On	True or false? All kangaroos are left-handed. Answer: Mostly true. Grey and red kangaroos, the two largest species, are nearly all left-handed.
12	Minds On	How well did you do at guessing? Was there any way to tell the true facts from the false ones?
13	Minds On	It can be difficult to figure out if things are true or false without doing more research. When we are judging online content, we can’t just “trust our gut” or rely on our own instincts.
14	Minds On	There are two kinds of false information online: Misinformation: When people share something they think is true but isn’t. Disinformation: When people share false or misleading information on purpose.
15	Minds On	Five digital strategies: Find the original. Verify the source. Check other information. Read fact-checking articles. Turn to places you trust. [Teacher’s notes: Give the students the Five Digital Strategies handout and review the five strategies together. Point out that we must follow these steps when we get information about politics or elections online. This information can influence how we make important civic choices, including voting.]
16	Activity	Round 1 – Fictional scenarios [Teacher’s note: These are possible scenarios where you might need to verify information about a political issue or about the election process in Canada.]
17	Activity	Round 1 – Fictional scenarios Getting Ready Your group will need: the Five Digital Strategies handout the graphic organizer round 1 scenario cards [Teacher’s notes: You can assign students roles within their teams, such as card master, recorder, reporter and reader. You can give out the cards one at a time, or give them all to the student who is designated as the card master. Keep the answer card until the end.]
18	Activity	Round 1 – Fictional scenarios Read scenario card A aloud. Discuss the scenario and decide how trustworthy it is. Record your thinking on the graphic organizer. [Teacher’s note: If students would find it helpful, model one scenario for the class before teams begin their work.]
19	Activity	Round 1 – Fictional scenarios Read strategy cards B, C and D aloud. Discuss and consider: Does the card change the trustworthiness ranking of the scenario? Record your thinking on the graphic organizer.
20	Activity	Round 1 – Fictional scenarios Read answer card E aloud. Discuss and consider: What is your final ranking of the scenario? Why? Record your thinking on the graphic organizer.
21	Consolidation	Share your thinking: Read scenario card A to the class. Our final trustworthiness ranking is… The strategy we found the most helpful was… [Teacher’s note: If students are struggling to read the scenarios aloud, you can use the teacher summary page in the teacher guide to help clarify the information for the class.]
22	Activity	Round 2 – Real-life scenarios [Teacher’s note: Each scenario is based on real-life examples of political or election information that people have had to evaluate online.]
23	Activity	Round 2 – Real-life scenarios Getting Ready Your group will need: the Five Digital Strategies handout the graphic organizer round 2 scenario cards [Teacher’s notes: You can assign students roles within their teams, such as card master, recorder, reporter and reader. You can give out the cards one at a time, or give them all to the student who is designated as the card master. Keep the answer card until the end.]
24	Activity	Round 2 – Real-life scenarios Read scenario card A aloud. Discuss the scenario and decide how trustworthy it is. Record your thinking on the graphic organizer.
25	Activity	Round 2 – Real-life scenarios Read strategy cards B, C and D aloud. Discuss and consider: Does the card change the trustworthiness ranking of the scenario? Record your thinking on the graphic organizer.
26	Activity	Round 2 – Real-life scenarios Read answer card E aloud. Discuss and consider: What is your final ranking of the scenario? Why? Record your thinking on the graphic organizer.
27	Consolidation	Share your thinking: Read scenario card A to the class. Our final trustworthiness ranking is… The strategy we found the most helpful was… [Teacher’s note: If students are struggling to read the scenarios aloud, you can use the teacher summary page in the teacher guide to help clarify the information for the class.]
28	Consolidation	Discuss: What do you think is the best way to respond to false or misleading information online? What surprised you the most about the activity? How do you think misinformation and disinformation could affect our elections? [Teacher’s notes: It is our responsibility to detect misinformation and disinformation and help keep it from spreading by not sharing or “liking” it. This is especially important in an election period, when false or misleading information could influence the way people vote.]
29	Consolidation	Reflection: One thing I learned is… The next time I want to find out if something online is true, I will… To be an engaged and informed citizen in a democracy, it’s important to… [Teacher’s note: You can use the Exit Card handout on which these questions are printed.]