These materials aim to provide accessible and practical information about copyright – its protections, its limitations, and its role in encouraging creativity. Rather than just emphasizing what copyright prohibits, the goal here is to offer useful and positive information about what copyright allows and how students can successfully navigate and rely on copyright in their own roles as creators.
Each lesson below contains a short animation intended to spark a classroom discussion. Grades K-2 lessons introduce age-appropriate, ethical (and non-legal) concepts of sharing, ownership, and attribution. Grades 3-6 explore copyright explicitly, including related topics of fair use, public domain, and open sharing through Creative Commons. Middle School and High School lessons are also provided