SERIES: Media Literacy and Fake News

S1-S3

60–90 minutes

Create a misinformation checklist for responsible sharing

Stopping misinformation is not only a job for journalists or platforms. Every person who forwards, reposts or screenshots a claim becomes part of the information chain. You will build and test a short checking routine designed for the moment before somebody shares. By the end of this challenge you will: Recognise triggers that encourage […]

Create a misinformation checklist for responsible sharing

Your Mission

Design a misinformation checklist people could genuinely use before they hit Share.

You will identify sharing triggers, build a fast check, test it on a real claim and improve it against harder misinformation tactics.

The Shape of This Challenge

Discover

✏️ ️ Notice & question

Explore

️ Investigate & test

Create

✏️ Make & communicate

Reflect

️ Think & apply

Discover

Start with why people share too quickly and design for real behaviour.

Step 1

Why Do We Share Before We Check?

️ Trigger audit · 8–10 mins

We are learning to recognise emotional and social triggers that can make people share too quickly.

Misinformation often travels because a post feels urgent, shocking, funny, flattering or perfectly matched to what somebody already believes.

Your Task

List five reasons a person might share something without checking it.
Mark which are about emotion, identity, speed or social pressure.
Choose the trigger that would most affect you and write one pause rule for it.

I can identify common sharing triggers and one strategy for slowing down.

→ This gives your checklist a human-behaviour layer, not just technical checks.

Digital CitizenshipCritical ThinkingSelf-Management

Step 2

Build the First 30-Second Check

✏️ Design a routine · 8–10 mins

We are learning to create a fast routine for deciding whether a post deserves deeper checking.

Most people will not investigate every post for ten minutes. A useful checklist needs a quick first layer.

Your Task

Choose four fast checks: source, date, headline/context, evidence link, emotional language, image clues, corroboration.
Put them in the order you would actually use.
Make each instruction begin with a verb such as Check, Open, Search, Compare.
Keep the routine short enough to use before sharing.

I can create a practical first-pass misinformation check.

→ This becomes the core of your final checklist.

Problem SolvingDigital CitizenshipCommunication

Explore

Test the routine using lateral reading and then red-team its weaknesses.

Step 3

Test the Checklist on a Real Claim

Choose your route · 12–15 mins

We are learning to use lateral reading to test a claim rather than staying inside the original post.

Good checking often means leaving the page: investigate the source, find the original evidence and compare independent reporting.

Your Task

Choose a teacher-provided or public claim suitable for checking.
Run your quick checklist.
Complete one research route.
Record a verdict: supported, unsupported, misleading, out of context or not enough evidence.

⚡ Quick Track

Search the source, date and one key phrase from the claim. Find one independent source or original document that supports or challenges it.

Dig Deeper

Trace the claim to its earliest/original evidence, compare at least two independent sources and note whether the wording changed as it spread.

I can apply a checking routine and justify a verdict using external evidence.

→ This tells you which checklist steps actually work.

ResearchVerificationCritical Thinking

Step 4

Improve the Checklist After It Fails

️ Red-team · 10–12 mins

We are learning to test whether a checklist catches common misinformation tactics.

A checklist is only useful if it works against difficult examples, not just obvious fakes.

Your Task

Choose three tactics: old content presented as new, true image with false caption, cropped statistic, fake expert, satire without context, AI-generated content.
For each, ask whether your checklist would catch it.
Add or rewrite one checklist step where needed.
Keep the final checklist to no more than seven checks.

I can refine a verification routine after testing its weaknesses.

→ This gives you a checklist that is usable rather than theoretical.

Problem SolvingCritical ThinkingDigital Citizenship

Create & Share

Publish a short checklist that makes responsible sharing easier.

Step 5

Publish a Responsible Sharing Checklist

✏️ Refine · Create · 25–35 mins

We are learning to communicate a short verification routine people can realistically use before sharing.

The best checklist is memorable, specific and honest about when deeper checking is needed.

Your Task

Use no more than seven checks.
Include at least one source check, one evidence/context check and one cross-check.
Include one trigger-based pause rule from Step 1.
Add a final instruction for what to do when evidence is uncertain.
Choose one output below.

Share Check

1 page · 5–7 checks

⏱ 25–30 mins

Create a highly scannable checklist suitable for a classroom, phone screenshot or noticeboard.

Before You Share

4 slides · maximum 30 words per slide

⏱ 30–35 mins

Explain the triggers, quick checks, deeper check and what to do when unsure.

30-Second Share Check

60–90 seconds final runtime

⏱ 30–35 mins

Demonstrate the routine on a short example and finish with a memorable rule.

I can create a concise, tested misinformation checklist for responsible sharing.

→ This is your finished mission output.

Digital CitizenshipCommunicationProblem Solving

Step 6

Reflect, Apply, Look Forward

️ Think or discuss · 5–8 mins

We are learning to reflect on the responsibility involved in sharing uncertain information.

The next challenge focuses on images and video, where a real piece of media can still be used to tell a false story.

Your Task

Answer the three prompts.
Choose one checklist step you think you will genuinely use.
Write one situation where the responsible choice is simply not to share yet.

Reflect

Which kind of misinformation was hardest for your checklist to catch?

Apply

How could the checklist be adapted for a family group chat, workplace or school community?

Look Forward

How might generative AI make the ‘pause before sharing’ habit more important?

I can explain how slowing down and checking can reduce accidental misinformation.

→ You now have a verification routine ready for visual claims.

ReflectionDigital CitizenshipEthical Reasoning

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TOOLKIT

Choose Your Tools

Use the tools available to you. The quality of the checking and reasoning matters more than the software.

Check

Use lateral reading: leave the page, search the source, find original evidence and see what independent sources say.

Verify

Use official statistics, original studies, full speeches/documents or reputable fact-checking organisations where relevant.

Create

Use a checklist, poster, slides or a short share-before-you-check explainer.

Educator / Parent Notes

Age, Stage and Prior Learning: Designed for S1–S3. Use non-distressing, age-appropriate misinformation examples.

Before You Start: Do not ask learners to seek out extremist, graphic or harmful misinformation. Teacher-provided examples are ideal.

How to Open This: Show a plausible but unverified post and ask: “What makes you want to believe or share this before checking?”

Scheduling: Steps 1–4 need around 35–45 minutes; Step 5 needs 25–35 minutes.

If a Pupil Gets Stuck: Give learners four fixed checks and one teacher-provided claim. Let them improve only one checklist item after testing.

For Fast Finishers: Ask learners to compare speed versus confidence: what can be checked in 30 seconds, two minutes and ten minutes?

Marking Guidance: Look for lateral reading, evidence outside the original post, clear distinction between uncertainty and falsehood, and a checklist short enough to use in real life.

Create a misinformation checklist for responsible sharing

Create a misinformation checklist for responsible sharing

Discover

Why Do We Share Before We Check?

Build the First 30-Second Check

Explore

Test the Checklist on a Real Claim

Improve the Checklist After It Fails

Create & Share

Publish a Responsible Sharing Checklist

Reflect, Apply, Look Forward

Show What You Have Learned

Check

Verify

Create

Show What You Have Learned

Check

Verify

Create

TOOLKIT

Check

Verify

Create

Educator / Parent Notes

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