Teaching Media in Primary Schools

Children growing up in the 21st century need to understand the full range of media available to them, both as sources of information and entertainment, and as a means of communicating and sharing ideas. Embedded in the primary curriculum, media education enables children to become more fully literate for the digital age. Grounded in best classroom practice, this book aims to help you think about the role of media in children's lives, and to teach about media effectively in your classroom. Three dimensions of media education for the 3-11 age range are highlighted: children's own cultural experiences, the development of critical awareness, and opportunities for creative expression. The chapters are written by literacy advisors, leading academics, teacher-trainers and classroom practitioners. Topics covered include: understanding children's relationships with media and how to build on these constructively; getting to grips with 'multimodality'; developing children's critical skills through watching and analysing moving image media; broadening children's experiences of different kinds of media and their media literacy; creative media activities that promote imaginative thinking and decision-making; and, the importance of social networking and social media and how to use these in the classroom. In an increasingly digital world, media education is an essential part of good teaching, not just as a tool to teach the more traditional aspects of the curriculum, but in its own right as an essential part of literacy. This book is relevant to all teachers working in Primary schools, and will be particularly helpful for Literacy Co-ordinators.