Talk about Conspiracy Theories Zinfographic

Every English teacher has talked about conspiracy theories in their classroom before, but I can promise you’ve never done it like this.

Students will discuss the blueprint of a good conspiracy theory and apply that to a number of conspiracy theories from North America before entering into a lengthy guided discussion and ending with a writing activity in which they connect as many disparate themes as possible to make one cohesive and grossly absurd conspiracy. To get through all this material, you’ll definitely need the full 90 minutes, and you’ll be speeding through it, too. If you’re doing a weekend shift, it can easily get you through a good 2 hours of class time if you’re not speeding along. Probably more!

How to use Zinfographics.

You can use our Zinfographics in a multitude of ways depending on your objectives. Here are a few propositions for introducing these activities in your online and offline classes:

• Put students in pairs and distribute an infographic to each pair. The pairs analyze the infographic and respond to the questions in the “comprehension” box. Proceed, then, to a class-wide review of the comprehension questions. Then, complete the speaking activities as a group or in pairs.
• Divide students in groups of 2 or more, cut out the different parts of the infographic and then distribute a different part to each group. Have each group present the content of their section of the infographic to the class. Once all the pieces of the infographic have been presented, students respond as a class to the questions in the “comprehension” box. Then, they complete the speaking activities.
• For an online class, display the infographic on your screen and use the screen share function. Ask your students to respond in turns to the “comprehension” questions. The other students can, if they would like, finish any incomplete answers. Then, complete the speaking activities as a class.
• Display the infographic and share your screen, or send the PDF file to each of your students. Ask students to analyze the infographic, and then (if possible) present 2 pieces of information they already knew and 2 pieces of information that surprised or shocked them.
• You could also use the infographics in an inverted classroom. To do so, ask each student to analyze the infographic at home and respond to the “comprehension” questions. You can also ask them to find some additional information about the subject which they will present to the class. This will facilitate a large amount of speaking.
• Note: Before presenting the infographic, you can write the name of the subject on the board and brainstorm the topic using a variety of questions, such as “What words do you associate with this subject? What do you know about this subject? Have you heard about this subject in the news recently? What’s your opinion on the subject?” etc.