Media Bias Analysis

This worksheet helps students in Grades 5 and 6 strengthen media literacy, critical reading, historical analysis, and evidence-based reasoning by examining how the Civil Rights Movement was portrayed in different news sources. Students read two short excerpts-one supportive and one critical-and analyze word choice, tone, bias, and author perspective to better understand how the same event can be presented in contrasting ways.

Academic Focus

• Identifying Tone and Bias (Grades 5-6) – Students examine language and wording to recognize positive, negative, or persuasive bias.
• Evaluating Historical Sources – Learners compare primary-style texts to understand how perspective shapes historical narratives.
• Media Literacy Skills – Students analyze how media representation can influence public opinion and understanding.
• Evidence-Based Explanation – The activity requires students to support their conclusions with specific textual evidence.

Instructional Benefits

• Teacher-Created Resource – Designed by educators to support upper-elementary ELA, social studies, and media literacy standards.
• Promotes Higher-Order Thinking – Encourages analysis, comparison, and thoughtful written responses.
• Flexible Use – Ideal for whole-class discussion, small groups, independent practice, or assessment.
• Supports Diverse Learners – Clear excerpts and guided questions scaffold complex concepts like bias and perspective.
• No-Prep Printable – Easy to implement in classrooms or homeschool settings.

This Media Bias Analysis worksheet helps students build essential skills in critical reading, source evaluation, and historical understanding. By comparing differing portrayals of the Civil Rights Movement, learners develop awareness of bias, perspective, and credibility in media texts. It’s a valuable resource for teaching students how to think carefully about information in both classroom and homeschool environments.

This worksheet is part of our Civil Rights Movement Worksheets collection.