CI 3750: Media and Learning
Appalachian State University
Spring 2000
Cereal Box Investigation
1. A description
of the intended audience.
First/second grade students are not expected
to have much prior knowledge of media literacy skills. At this grade
level students are learning about themselves and their place in the world.
This age is particularly susceptible to advertising and packaging gimmicks.
I want to introduce the idea of packaging” and “target audience.”
I expect children at this age to have plenty of exposure to cereal advertising
through print ads and television commercials.
2. A statement of objectives.
1) Select breakfast cereals that target
children (such as Batman and Barbie). Ask
students if they can recognize the characters
on the box.
2) List some characteristics of the
“kid” cereal (characters, color, games, nutritional
information, UPC code, price,...).
3) Show other boxes of cereal targeted
to adults (such as Oat Bran, Grapenuts). Ask
students if they recognize the cereal.
4) List some characteristics of the
“adult” cereal (graphics, color, nutritional information,
UPC code, price,...)
4. Links to Media Literacy materials on the web:
Vs. 
5. A reflection on how the activity went when I taught it:
The original plan was
to teach the media literacy activity to the whole class. My plans
were only slightly altered when, Mrs. Greene, my coordinating teacher
asked me to take just a small group of eight students to do the activity
in another available room. She needed to spend some extra time working
with some students that were falling behind in their writing assignments,
and she thought that the students that were caught up would be easy for
me to work with. I was very delighted to hear this! I enjoy
working with small groups. I now knew I would have plenty of supplies
and time for the lesson.
On the day of the lesson
I brought in all the cereal boxes covered with paper (yellow, because white
was too transparent), the markers and pencils, and the cereal boxes I bought
to represent the various "target audiences" (kids - Lucky Charms and Fruit
Loops, adults - Shredded Wheat and All-Bran). The children were very
excited. They knew they were going to get to eat some cereal!
They thought the covered boxes were presents. I had to remind students
not to untape the boxes. Mrs. Greene had already given me the
list of students to take. During the classes writing time, I took the small
group to the music room that was not being used. I followed the plan
directly and completely. The kids knew more about cereal than I ever
expected. They noticed small details that were familiar to them,
but not me. Something interesting that I never noticed was that "adult"
cereals always has fruit on top of the cereal. It took some convincing
on my part to get the children to understand that Fruit Loops are not a
fruit!
The term "target audience"
was complicated to explain, but I think I got it through to them.
We first talked about a "target", as in a bulls eye. Then we expanded
that idea into what it means to "target" other things. All the children
left with at least an understanding of who it is that cereal companies
are targeting.
I was very pleased with
the work my students did. They all picked a target audience.
Some chose adults, some kids, an others animals. Students loved the
activity. They still talk about it. They quickly wanted to
show off their own "brand" of cereal. Having a small group of well
behaved, on-task students made teaching the lesson a breeze. I learned
that first graders know a lot more about cereal than I ever expected.
They eat more cereal than I ever expected, too! When teaching this
lesson, save the cereal taste testing to the end. First graders love
to munch. Saving the cereal to eat until the end is a wonderful reward
for the whole group. It also is a great time to recap the lesson
and discuss ideas further.
Here are a few of the products generated from Mrs. Greene's first graders at Bethel Elementary!
Student's created their own unique brand
of cereal,
choosing a target audience.