Open Access Lesson Plans and Resources for Teachers

I perused this website while looking for online resources. The lesson plans are comprehensive, featuring Canadian artists with information about the artists embedded in the lesson plan. They contain scaffolded instruction, activities, assignments, and for all grade levels. 

https://www.aci-iac.ca/education/teacher-resource-guides/

I've talked about AllSides.com a lot in my posts, and for good reason. It's a valuable resource that "exposes people to information and ideas from all sides of the political spectrum so they can better understand the world and each other". I use it in my news units to analyze a current story from a variety of perspectives, as the site provides articles from left, center, and right news outlets. This gives students a chance to look at how media bias can influence a story, even though the website is strictly U.S.-based. I also appreciate that the site offers a media bias chart, which provides an easy way to identify political bias in the news. 

https://www.allsides.com/

I can't say enough good things about Caroline Monnet. Her work is a fantastic case study for media arts students. As a multi-disciplinary artist, her work grapples with colonialism's impact and updates outdated systems with Anishinaabeg methodologies. Her films and installations provide powerful examples of environmental stewardship, collaboration, and how to give a platform to oppressed cultures.

carolinemonnet.ca

This organization provides some great resources for teachers, including posters and infographics about the creative and critical processes. I found the "Critical Analysis Process" infographic to be especially helpful, as it outlines the importance of cultural context in forming an unbiased point of view. These resources can be a great way to help students develop their critical analysis skills and a deeper appreciation for more complex art.

ontarioarteducationassociation.org/resources/

If you want to show your students an example of multidisciplinary media art, Casey Neistat is a great resource. He's a digital creator who has built a career on his reliance on storytelling. His work encapsulates how important it is to focus on the story, as he believes storytelling is "more important, and human, now than ever before". I've also found his inspiration, the artist Tom Sachs, to be a valuable resource for creative and artistic expression. He is a sculptor, filmmaker and a master engineer in bricolage. 

Casey Neistat: https://www.youtube.com/caseyneistat

Tom Sachs: TomSachs.com

The voice the NFB gives to independent artists and creators is invaluable. The out-of-the-box thinking you can find in films that don't adhere to industry expectations are inspiring and examples of true unique voices. For example, the film 'Mobilize' by Caroline Monnet is a compilation of archival NFB footage set to a modern mix of Indigenous throat singing music. It's a resource that deserves more attention.

https://www.nfb.ca/

This is an awesome resource, full of free and open-access tutorials and templates for students to use. It provides exemplars, information, video tutorials, and templates for a wide range of media arts creations, including scriptwriting and storyboarding, narration, animated and live-action videos, editing, and saving and sharing content. It's a great tool for students to problem-solve and work independently.

https://lib.conestogac.on.ca/c.php?g=717342&p=5119464

This is an online community dedicated to advancing digital and media literacy education that offers a bunch of free multimedia resources, lesson plans, videos, and podcasts. This site would be a perfect fit for a unit on media biases [like ours] because it provides resources like a Propaganda Gallery and Courageous Conversations materials that are specifically designed to build media literacy and active listening skills. These resources would be valuable for activities in the media arts classroom that would help students to deconstruct and analyze media messages and engage in discussions about ethical responsibilities.

https://mediaeducationlab.com/