Media Masters ROCK!

Media Masters Rock – Free (K-8) Digital Citizenship Resources for Alabama Teachers

Major funding for MMR was provided by a grant from the Alabama Association of RC&D Councils and the producers of SHOALSFEST.

Media Masters Rock! (MMR) is a statewide digital literacy initiative designed to empower Alabama’s K–8 students to safely and wisely navigate the internet and social media.

This FREE, ready-to-use program includes videos, music, study guides, posters, and classroom activities, all aligned with the Alabama Digital Literacy Course of Study. MMR (hosted by PBS TV star – Steve Trash) will help students learn to spot misinformation, evaluate online content, and become respectful, responsible, digital citizens.

“Media Masters Rock takes the guesswork out of planning—every resource is aligned to standards and ready to use. It’s a game-changer for busy educators who want to engage students without feeling overwhelmed.”
– Jennifer Warhurst – Elementary Curriculum Director – Franklin County Schools

Why Do We Need MMR?

As children, we were taught to look both ways before crossing the street. But today’s kids are navigating an even more complex space—the online world—without the same clear guidance.

Numerous studies show that kids ages 8-12 spend 5 to 5.5 hours per day on screens, not including schoolwork!

And yet, we fail to give kids the right tools to wisely engage with social media, messaging apps, videos, and games. We aren’t teaching them to pause before reposting something untrue, ask critical questions, or spot the difference between helpful and harmful content.

MMR will help Alabama teachers bridge this education gap in online literacy.

“This program doesn’t just teach media literacy — it teaches empathy, clarity, and truthfulness. This is a terrific program and I’m looking forward to seeing my students’ growth as readers, writers, and people.”  
– Jennifer Baker – Elementary Curriculum Director – Winston County Schools

Specific – TEACHER – Disciplines

We’ve designed all our materials for three specific elementary disciplines…

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL – LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALISTS

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL – ELA – ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS TEACHERS

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL – PHYSICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS

The Media Masters Pledge

I promise to take responsibility for my words and actions online and offline.

MMR’s 5 Online Lessons

Lesson 1. THE RUBBER BAND RULE – Everything on social media can snap back on you. Be careful what you do.

Lesson 2. AQBS RULE – ASK QUESTIONS. BE SKEPTICAL. Is something on social media or the internet creating a strong emotion in you? Pause… Ask questions. Be skeptical.

Lesson 3. ASK – WHO’S GETTING THE CANDY – With every post on social media someone is getting candy. The candy they’re getting isn’t actual candy… it’s money, fame, or popularity. So we should be asking the question, “who is benefiting from this post?”

Lesson 4. ASK – HOW FULL IS IT? – Before you post, always ask yourself… “is it helpful? Is it hurtful? Is it truthful? How full is it?”

Lesson 5 – THINK FIRST – THE CRITICAL THINKERS SECRET WEAPON – critical thinking does not come naturally to humans, but we can get better at it. Here’s how.

“We’ve used Media Masters Rock in our Winfield After School programs this year, and it’s truly helping us reach our goal of making children better digital citizens for the 21st century. The kids love the songs and dances!”
– Amanda Frost, Winfield Middle School

Free Materials Include

• VIDEOS – short ed-videos (with grade specific study guides for each)

• BEATBOX SONGS – Lyric Videos themed to the Media Masters Rock 5 core ideas (with activity guides),

• POSTERS – downloadable pdf poster artwork

• VOCABULARY – vocabulary words

• #SPOT THE TRUTH CHALLENGE CONTEST – a social media contest.

ALABAMA COURSE OF STUDY DIGITAL LITERACY CORRELATION – for all five lessons

“Media Masters Rock makes media literacy engaging, practical, and truly accessible. Our students are not just learning — they’re thinking critically, asking questions, and making better choices online. It’s exactly the kind of program every school needs right now.”
– Krystal Harrison – Library Media Specialist – Rogers Elementary School

How Can Teachers Use These Materials?

You ARE allowed to share.

You ARE allowed to copy.

You ARE allowed to mix.

You can NOT sell.

You should give attribution – in effect you need to give credit to the creator like this…

“All Media Masters Rock materials created by Steve Trash”.

This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

“I have taught Technology to K-8th graders for 7 years. I have tried several free and paid Digital Citizenship courses with my students. Steve Trash’s program has engaged my students far more than any others I’ve tried. It is the only program that students have requested to see again due to the fact that Steve Trash has a cool factor and a knack for making learning fun.”
– Christina Marks, Technology Teacher, Shoals Christian School, Florence, AL

Direct Links

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL – LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALISTS

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL – ELA – ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS TEACHERS

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL – PHYSICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS

“Media Masters Rock” very useful and timely tool to help combat digital media misuse and abuse of our young people. It is an outstanding resource especially for Physical Educators in grades 8 and under who see all the children. I think that this may be useful for Youth ministry, S.T.E.M., and Special Education programs as well. I certainly wish that this was available when I was teaching my elementary students.”
– Coach Shonna Beckwith – Retired Physical Education Teacher

Steve Trash has licensed all Media Masters Rock materials through Creative Commons. Click the link at the bottom for MUCH more detail about the license and your rights to use this content.

Here’s your quick link to all the Media Masters Rock videos on YouTube! Got a few minutes left in the day? Press play and wrap up with something smart, fun, and meaningful!

READY MADE – ALWAYS FREE – ALABAMA COURSE OF STUDY CORRELATED

Media Masters Rock! – Equipping the Next Generation of Alabama’s Digital Citizens