Artificial intelligence is more than a buzzword; it’s already shaping the way your students consume information. This back-to-school season, help students gain confidence in their ability to spot AI-generated content and find information they can trust.
When students understand how AI and algorithms work, they are better equipped to think independently about the content and information they generate. News literacy skills are the key. By teaching students how to determine the credibility of information and recognize the standards of fact-based journalism, educators equip them with the ability to know what to trust, share and act on.
The News Literacy Project, a nonpartisan education nonprofit, supports all educators — whether middle or high school, science, ELA or social studies — with free resources to develop students’ foundational news literacy skills. Dive in with these key resources.
1. Start with the Checkology® virtual classroom.
Checkology is a one-stop shop for all your news literacy teaching needs. Packed with interactive lessons, infographics, classroom activities, instructional supports and more, Checkology will help you address topics ranging from misinformation to news media bias to artificial intelligence.
2. Download the News Literacy Starter Pack.
The News Literacy Project’s Back-to-School Toolkit features a downloadable Starter Pack brimming with easy-to-implement teaching tools to fit your needs this fall. Whether you’ve noticed a decline in students’ ability to agree on the facts or you’re looking to address the advancement of AI technologies, this handy guide will help you prepare students to think critically about the world around them. (Note: You’ll need to be logged into Checkology to access all of the resources listed in the Starter Pack PDF (on Checkology, search by “starter pack,” or browse by category or other criteria).or browse by category or other criteria).
3. Jump start your teaching about AI.
In the News Literacy Starter Pack, begin with these recommended tools to deepen students’ understanding of AI technologies.
- “6 things to know about AI”: An infographic sharing important context and tips about AI. Log in to Checkology for access.
- “Introduction to Algorithms”: An interactive lesson giving students a comprehensive and eye-opening look at how algorithms and AI shape social media feeds. Log in to Checkology for access.
- AI or not?: A lesson plan with slides and extension activity ideas to boost students’ ability to detect AI-generated content. Log in to Checkology for access.
- Daily Do Now Slides: Maximize news literacy learning in the opening minutes of class with quick activities. Log in to Checkology for access.
4. Learn how news literacy fits into your plans.
If you’re ready to develop a deeper plan for teaching news literacy, use these instructional supports to determine how the News Literacy Project’s standards-aligned resources can best serve your students’ needs:
- Framework for Teaching News Literacy: Prepare to teach news literacy by exploring common standards, essential questions, and knowledge/skills objectives, along with suggested performance tasks and learning activities. The framework can be used for integrating news literacy into existing curriculum, or as the basis for creating stand-alone courses or units. Log in to Checkology for access.
- Grade Band Expectations for News Literacy: Reference this guide with scaffolded skills, content knowledge and dispositions for schools and districts seeking to implement news literacy curriculums. It’s designed to foster cross-curricular connections and complement already established benchmark requirements. Log in to Checkology for access.
5. Unlock easy access.
Finally, a note for administrators and district tech leaders: New for the 2025-26 school year, Checkology is now available on Clever! Learn how to get set up with Clever and securely connect to Checkology with this free guide.
