Source + Beyond the Source Framework: Lesson Plan

Class Discussion (10 min) 

Start the section by showing the students a sample source (see suggested topics & sources on this guide) and asking: 

• How do you decide if a source of information is trustworthy? What criteria do you consider?

Option to ask students to raise their hands and write answers on the board or set up a PollEverywhere to solicit ideas. 

As students respond, take a few moments to elaborate on particularly relevant responses. 

Source & Beyond the Source (5 min) 

Move on to a slide showing the source and beyond the source graphic and review the criteria. 

Explain why the context of how information was created and shared is just as important for source evaluation. 

Emphasize that evaluation (especially for the “Beyond the Source” questions) gets easier as you develop more expertise on a subject. Tie in to the concept of lateral reading – how reviewing multiple sources on a topic helps prepare you to evaluate each one.  

Share the evaluation chart handout as an additional source. 

Small Group Activity (10 min) 

Have students work in groups with others at their tables. 

Share an additional source (a different one) on the same topic. 
Ask students to evaluate the two sources using the Source and Beyond criteria. 

Have them reflect on these questions for each source : 

• Would you share this source on social media? Why or why not? 
• Would you use this source in a research assignment? Why or why not? 

Wrap up (5 min) 

Ask groups to raise their hands if they would share the source  (make a note of different responses between groups)

Ask groups to raise their hands if they would include the source in a research assignment (make a note of different response between groups)

Call on groups to share their reasoning and engage the class in some discussion. Repeat for the second source. 

Things to dive deeper on: 

• If groups answered the questions differently from each other
• If students would share a source on social media, but not use it in a research paper
• Elaborating on the similarities and differences between the two sources