News literacy is a set of knowledge, skills, attitudes, and dispositions that helps people process news and media communications. News literate consumers are able to locate factual, credible information, distinguish fact from opinion, evaluate the quality of news sources, and explore multiple perspectives before drawing conclusions. Finally, they understand the role of freedom of speech in a democracy and the need for ethics in journalism.

Read a couple recently published children’s books, then learn more at the website:

GUARDIANS OF LIBERTY: FREEDOM OF THE PRESS AND THE NATURE OF NEWS by Linda Barrett Osborne explores two centuries of the guarantees expressed in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Using examples throughout American history, the author explores how freedom of the press has evolved and the challenges caused by new technologies. From the Civil Rights Movement and the Student Press to fake news, each chapter explores a key idea through the use of text, historical photos, pull-quotes, and primary source documents.

BREAKING THE NEWS: WHAT’S REAL, WHAT’S NOT, AND WHY THE DIFFERENCE MATTERS by Robin Terry Brown is intended to help readers become responsible users of the media. Chapters examine the history of news, making of news, misinformation and the media today. The book concludes by providing ideas for seeking the truth and thoughts about the future of news. The colorful images and interesting text will attract young readers.

The NEWS LITERACY PROJECT is a nonpartisan, nonprofit providing resources for educators that encourage learners to be active and engaged consumers of news and information. The educator section offers an online learning platform called Checkology and lots of classroom materials.

To visit the website, go to https://newslit.org/.

ARC courtesy of Abrams and National Geographic. ( )