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1984 by George Orwell  

LESSON PLAN 1
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 * BOOK 1: Tampering/Censorship of Information**
 * __**Standard**__
 * **Media Literacy 3.C.2** - Determine influences on news media based on existing political, historical, economical, and social contexts (e.g., importance of audience feedback).


 * __**Expectations**__
 * They will form their own opinions whether the government's actions to censor/tamper information is justified.
 * They will learn about the Apollo "hoax" and decide whether or not it was fake.
 * My group will learn of censorship/tampering in other countries.


 * __**Materials**__
 * laptop to read news article
 * Realplayer to view Apollo clips
 * Handout with censorship and Apollo moon landing

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 * __**Opening**__
 * I will open my presentation with different videos of the Apollo moon landing. I will point out the details which some claim make the video "fake." They will fill out a worksheet questioning the government's reason for faking the moonlanding.


 * __**Middle**__
 * The group will read a news article online about Google censorship in China.
 * They will fill out a worksheet with various situations dealing with censorship and tampering of information.


 * __**Ending**__
 * The group will have one last question on the sheet to answer: whether tampering and censoring information is ever justified.

Links: [|Apollo Worksheet]

[|Apollo Videoclip 1]

[|Apollo Videoclip 2]

[|China Google article] [|Google China Censorship worksheet]

LESSON PLAN 2 **

BOOK 2: **Trust and Relationships**

o Media Literacy 3.C.3 - Recognize that creators of media use a number of forms, techniques, and technologies to convey their messages.
 * Standard

o My group will analyze the different relationships in Book 2 to develop a better understanding of their connections. o They will explore the various levels of trust and loyalty. o They will successfully use iMovie.
 * Expectations

o laptops with iMovie o worksheet (Trust and Loyalty)
 * Materials

o I will hand out a sheet to my group with the names of all the characters. They will draw the connections and decide which relationships have the most trust. They have to use their knowledge of the book to choose where there can be trust put and where it should not.
 * Opening

o My group will make a short movie describing four of the characters from the book. They must research the relationships of each character and use the information in the video. They will then evaluate each of their roles in the society and where their loyalty lies. Also, my group must explain who their enemies are and who they trust.
 * Middle

o My group will present their movies.
 * Ending

Links:

[|Character Web handout]

LESSON PLAN 3

BOOK 3: Brainwashing in 1984 and in History


 * Standard

o Media Literacy 3.A.1 - Understand that messages are representations of social reality and vary by historic time periods and parts of the world

• Expectations o My group will understand the power of brainwashing. o They will examine the techniques used in 1984. o They will understand the history of brainwashing and its effects.


 * Materials

o laptops with keynote o worksheet (Nazi Germany brainwashing)


 * Opening

o My group will go on their computers and read an article from the New York Times about brainwashing. Then, I will hand out a worksheet to my group. It details the similarities between the brainwashing techniques used in Nazi Germany and in Oceania.


 * Middle

o My group will make a short presentation in Keynote. They must find 5 of the ways the people of Oceania were brainwashed and explain them. They have to explain the power of Big Brother and the effects his methods had on the people.


 * Ending

o My group will present their slideshows.

Links: [|Brainwashing Handout] [|Brainwashing Article]

I attempted to turn my body to face my interviewee, but the airplane seatbelts restricted me. Sensing my struggle, my mother unclipped her seat belt and turned to me. Though the oval shaped window cast a glare, I was still able to watch as she ran her dark nails through her short sun-kissed blonde hair. Her thumb met her mouth as she gnawed violently on her newly polished nail, ruining the manicurist’s hard work from the previous day.
 * Vietnam Interview:**

After a moment of restlessness, she stared into my eyes, suspecting my desire to begin. The interview would commence with an easy, no-brainer, no sweat question: how old were you when the war in Vietnam began? What I thought would be simple proved to be otherwise for my mother. “Ummmm, thirteen” she answered, her voice filled with uncertainty and reservation. After the words finished flowing from her mouth, her eyes rolled up, searching all corners of her brain to reassure herself she was correct. I refrained from telling her that she was ten years off, and instead continued the interview.

Her biggest memories of the war were the [|peace rallies and protests]. Unfortunately, her age prohibited her from attending. As she spoke of peace and love, I couldn’t help but notice how my mom still carried her hippie days with her, while she shuffled her Birkenstocks on the airplane carpet, and wiped pretzel crumbs off her floral tie-dye shirt.

Susan lived her teenage years as a resident of Fort Lee, completely oblivious to the crusade over seas, and chose to be disconnected from the world's current crisis. "My immediate [|life and environment] did not change because of the age that I was," she said, followed by a moment of pause, "I wasn’t really affected on a personal basis." Like her fellow hippies, my mother opposed the war, which fortunately caused no strain on her relationships. As a witness to a world in change, Susan took no interest to following the news. Her options to learn about Vietnam were limited, the war was "not [mentioned] on a daily basis and it wasn’t discussed in school." With politically inactive parents and an inadequate supply of information, it was as if she was living in a war-less world.

I prepared my next question, but a sudden wave of turbulence hit the airplane, transforming a smooth ride into one filled with many ups-and-downs. I stared at her blankly, my face frozen with fear. Rather than sharing my panic, she laughed and gazed out into the sea of infinite clouds. I couldn't understand how she could shrug off her fears and worries, but I realized it was what she was taught to do fifty years back. As the plane transitioned back to its more stable state, the interview continued on. It wasn't until the war was over that Susan finally saw the effects of Vietnam. "Afterwards in the following years, my friendships included people who were drafted," she told me, though it was a [|sore subject for them] to discuss. "I had a friend who just remembers all the bombings and people dying and he always had trouble sleeping afterwards and that’s all he really ever spoke about." My mom's only connection to the war was the pictures and death tolls that [|plagued television]. "The bombings, the POWS, and the number of American deaths" are what she remembers most, though the news stations neglected to mention any Vietnamese deaths.

The pilot announced that our flight was drawing to a close, signaling the end to my interview. For one final trip down memory lane, I dared to find out whether Susan knew the [|reasons for such a violent war]. "Not really," she admitted while she bit down on her bottom lip, instead only dreaming of a world "revolved around wanting peace, and that's about it." When asked if today she knew what we were fighting for, Susan confessed as she clipped her seatbelt snugly around her waist, "Peace? No, I really don’t," and gazed out into the approaching skyline of New Jersey.

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 * Footage from Vietnam:**

A link to a [|podcast] discussing the Department of Peace.