3.19 Reading Nonfiction with the Lens of Power

CONNECTION When has a story made you upset?

TEACHING POINT Today I want to teach you that readers analyze how authors influence readers. Readers do this by paying attention to when they are stirred to strong emotion.

TEACHING Kids Nationwide Reject the Blackfish Agenda When a kid in Malibu, California forced the rest of her class to miss out on a day at SeaWorld because she was mislead by Blackfish, it made national news. Ever since that girl forced the radical agenda of animal rights groups like PETA, the Dodo and others, they have claimed that children are rejecting accredited organizations in favor of a debunked documentary.

TEACHING Kids Nationwide Reject the Blackfish Agenda When a kid in Malibu, California forced the rest of her class to miss out on a day at SeaWorld because she was mislead by Blackfish, it made national news. Ever since that girl forced the radical agenda of animal rights groups like PETA, the Dodo and others, they have claimed that children are rejecting accredited organizations in favor of a debunked documentary.

TEACHING Kids Nationwide Reject the Blackfish Agenda When a kid in Malibu, California forced the rest of her class to miss out on a day at SeaWorld because she was mislead by Blackfish, it made national news. Ever since that girl forced the radical agenda of animal rights groups like PETA, the Dodo and others, they have claimed that children are rejecting accredited organizations in favor of a debunked documentary. Strong wording You can do better—you can argue with evidence, logic and principles Recognize when someone is manipulating you!

ENGAGEMENT However, we are learning this isn’t the case, and in fact quite the opposite is happening nationwide! Children of all ages are rejecting the radical agenda being shoved in their faces and asking for alternatives. Not only are they analyzing the source material the school is presenting to them, they’re demanding they be allowed to think critically by hearing both sides of the issue, which is a victory for anyone interested in education. Here we have a few stories of kids who are standing up to radical activists and demanding that they hear the full story and learn the truth: Austin and Goliath in San Antonio, Texas When one of Austin’s teachers announced that they would be required to watch Blackfish in school, Austin stood up and demanded that they be allowed a SeaWorld trainer from SeaWorld San Antonio to come in afterwards to comment on the film. The teacher responded, “We don’t have time for that.” Austin quickly countered, “Then we don’t have time for Blackfish.” The teacher agreed and the class was spared 80 minutes of out-of-context YouTube clips and propaganda.

LINK SOME QUESTIONS TO ASK TO ANALYZE POWER IN A TEXT What emotions is this text stirring up in me and how is it doing that? Who benefits from this text? Who is represented? Who is left out?

MIDWORKSHOP When you are thinking about the emotions being stirred up, remember to look at the source. Our piece today was created by a group of people that love SeaWorld. Then I saw that SeaWorld gave them funding to get them started. They got paid by SeaWorld! Of course they wrote the article they did! Ask why the text might have been created. What were they trying to accomplish? Who wrote it?

SHARE Big Idea What big idea can you come up with about your topic? Killer whale shows: Sometimes in life, what humans want becomes more important than what animals need. What big idea can you come up with about your topic? Does my big idea about killer whales fit your topic? Could your big idea fit with another group? Could theirs fit with yours?