RESOURCE: Powerful Voices for Kids

[Frank W. Baker]

Powerful Voices for Kids is a free online resource from the Media Education Lab at The University of Rhode Island. The resource is intended to help teacher-educators introduce digital and media literacy to teachers in the elementary grades. They can watch videos of classroom practice, see samples of student work, get lesson plans and discuss strategies that help children build literacy, language, critical thinking, creative and collaborative skills by exploring mass media, popular culture and digital media tools and technologies.

The site presents 12 ideas for exploring digital and media literacy in elementary school:

• Interpreting & Creating Photos
• The Power of the PSA
• City as Classroom
• Authors and Audience
• Learning Visual Grammar
• Asking Key Questions
• Remix Play as Media Literacy
• Warm & Cool Feedback
• Making Inferences, Music Videos & Screencasting
• Current Events in K–2
• Exploring Edutainment
• Songwriting