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GGC is grateful for the support from MediaSmarts in building DeCode.

DeCodeRangers Program

DeCode – Rangers Program 2

Rangers DeCode ChallengeThis challenge is designed to help you better decode the digital world, especially how girls are represented and treated in digital media.

DeCode should take you between two and four meetings to complete. Mix and match activities that you and your unit want to do. They can be led by anyone. If there are activities in other branches that your unit would like to try, go for it! A DeCode crest is available to celebrate all your hard work.

For your meetings, we suggest:

• The starter activity • One (or more!) activities from each theme • The closing activity

Share your experiences with us on social media using #GirlsDeCode and the tags:

Objectives and Outcomes

Objective:

To learn more about the digital world and explore how you interact with digital media.

Outcomes:

You will:

• Think critically about what you see in digital media.• Discover ways to create safer and more positive online experiences.• Learn to recognize when you need to disconnect with technology, and how to reconnect in real life

(IRL).

Girl Guides of Canada @girlguidesofcan @girlguidesofcanadaLET’S CONNECT Share your

photos!

Look for the OUTDOOR icon throughout this Challenge. This icon identifies activities that can easily be done outdoors with little or no modifications.

Look for the TECH NEEDED icon throughout this challenge. This icon identifies activities that work best with technology included.


BEGIN the Challenge with this Starter Activity

Starter Activity: Digital Day - RangersThink about your daily tech use. What times of the day are you using tech? What are you doing when you are connected?

Skills you’ll build: You will need: Time it takes:• Self-awareness• Observation• Organization

• One clock template per person (page 17)

• One large clock template per group (page 18)

• Markers or pencil crayons

• 5 – 10 minutes

What to do:

1. Have everyone talk about the devices, apps or ways that they use tech each day. You can colour code some of the more popular answers and record them for everyone to see.

2. Give everyone a clock template and markers. Break it into blocks of time to show the times of day when you usually use tech.

3. Use the colour coding from step 1 to shade in the time you are spending on different platforms or sites. You will see both the times of day and the ways you are interacting with tech on your clock.

4. After you have finished your clock, make a small group and compare your clocks. .

• Are there times when you are most likely to be engaging with your tech?

• Why do you think that is? • What are some similarities you notice in your tech

use times? Differences?

5. Altogether, share your observations:

• What do you notice about the time of day you and your unit are most likely to be engaging with tech? • What times do most people keep tech-free?

SAMPLE CLOCK

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8am

Check Instagram

2:30pm Go on Snapchat4pm Online Research


Stuff to talk about:

• Which apps and programs are you using when you’re online? Which are you most likely to use?• Does your use change on the weekend or during holidays? Why do you think that is?

Remember: Screen time and tech time is different for each Rangers and their family. This could include the types of the tech they are using and the amounts of time they are

spending with it. It is important to keep this in mind as you go through DeCode.

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SAMPLE CLOCK TEMPLATE


CONTINUE your meeting by selecting one or more activities from each of the themes below.

Theme 1 - My Digital WorldThe digital world is filled with messages about what you should do, like or be. These activities will help you question what you are seeing and being told by digital media.

Theme Activities: Culture Jamming (Modified from the SPARKING Change, Encouraging Activism program from Project Spark, 2013)

When digital ads surround you, both online and in real life (IRL), their messages can be overwhelming. In this activity, you will creatively turn those messages on their heads using culture jamming.

Skills you’ll build: You will need: Time it takes:• Critical thinking• Creativity• Voice

• One advertisement per group (page 19) • Markers• Optional: Internet, devices and photo-

editing apps/software


What to do:

1. As a group talk about some of the places you see advertisements the most. What do you notice about the ads being targeted at teen girls and young women?

2. Lay out all the advertisements from page 19. Take a few minutes to look at each one.

3. Come back together and talk about:

• Who’s in the ad; who’s not• How does the ad makes you feel• The stereotypes depicted about gender, age, body type, skin colour, privilege 1

4. Culture jamming is when you take an ad that exists and you change the message using humour in some way. It should reflect that something is unrealistic in the ad or that there is a problem with the existing message. What would you rather the ad said? It could be witty, sarcastic or something eye-roll worthy. Share thoughts on how to culture jam the advertisement.

1 Johnson, Matthew. “MediaSmarts.” Unpacking Privilege, MediaSmarts, 2016, mediasmarts.ca/teacher-resources/unpacking-privilege. Accessed 27 Sept. 2017

“Privilege” means the advantages that come from being part of a dominant group or majority group (e.g. white, male, heterosexual,

non-disabled, etc.) 1


E.g.

5. In small groups, take one of the ads and create a culture jam for it. You can try to make it blend in with the existing design or make your comment very obvious.

6. Share your culture jams in a gallery walk around the space.


• Why do you think it is important to question the messages you are seeing? • Does seeing a culture jam change how you see that product or company? Why?• How can you apply your critical thinking to dissect the messages in other digital media, especially with

ad pop-ups on your social media accounts?

How you frame it Often pictures or videos are cropped to show only part of the story and to change the way you see it. In this activity, look for ways that images are manipulated to tell a different story.

Skills you’ll build: You will need: Time it takes:• Critical thinking• Observation• Imagination

• Reframing the image example (page 22)• Camera with image cropping• Optional: Device that plays videos• Optional: 20 to 30 small items on a tray


What to do:

1. Download or stream the video “Test Your Awareness” from https://goo.gl/TXK65A. After you watch it, talk about:

For other examples check out: https://goo.gl/xrPBMU and https://goo.gl/h8UJ8y

https://goo.gl/TXK65A

https://goo.gl/xrPBMU

https://goo.gl/xrPBMU

https://goo.gl/h8UJ8y

https://goo.gl/h8UJ8y


• Did you notice any of the changes before they were pointed out? • Why do you think you may have missed the changes?

2. Show everyone the first image example on page 22:

• What story do you think the image is suggesting? • Do you have enough information to figure out

exactly what you are looking at? • What might you be missing?

3. In small groups, work together to create an image that can be manipulated to tell a different story.

4. Set things up and take your pictures. Make sure to take two images so you can crop one without losing the original.

5. Use a gallery walk with devices, print the images or have each group share how they manipulated their original images. Talk about how the story changed after the picture was edited.


• Why should you question the images you are seeing in the digital world?• When you make an assumption about what you are seeing, what sort of problems could you have?

What happens when you are missing part the picture or a certain perspective?

THEME 2 – Safe and Positive SpacesBefore you can make your mark on the digital world, you need to feel safe and supported. In these activities, you will find ways to protect yourself online and create safe spaces. Theme Activities: Picture Perfect Life

Social media can lead some girls and young women to compare themselves to others. This gives you the ability to create the impression that your world is perfect, even when it might not be. In this activity, take time to talk about how images that show the picture-perfect life might be misleading or might be telling the whole story.

If you do not have access to tech for this activity, you can play a “What’s the difference game” or Kim’s Game. Lay out a selection of up to

20 objects on a tray. Give everyone two minutes to memorize what they see. Change or take away a couple of the items. Everyone tries to remember what has changed. You can ask:

• What was the most difficult change to spot?

• Why do you think you may have missed that change?


Skills you’ll build: You will need: Time it takes:• Critical thinking• Self-awareness• Reflection

• A comfortable space• Stuff to talk about (page 10)• Sexting support (backgrounder,

page 4)• Drawing materials or text editing

apps• Optional: paper • Optional: something to write with

• 10– 30 minutes

What to do:

1. Start by reminding everyone that this is a safe space, which includes respect of differences, opinions, experiences, beliefs and is free of judgement. Decide if you want to run the activity in a big group or small groups. If not everyone is comfortable in a big group for this activity, use small groups to make everyone as comfortable as possible.

2. Before starting this discussion about some of the pressures that girls are facing online, you may want to read this quote from the ESPN piece “Split Image:”

• “Everyone presents an edited version of life on social media. People share moments that reflect an ideal life, an ideal self. Hundreds of years ago, we sent letters by horseback, containing only what we wanted the recipient to read. Fifty years ago, we spoke via the telephone, sharing only the details that constructed the self we wanted reflected. With Instagram, one thing has changed: the amount we consume of one another’s edited lives. Young women growing up on Instagram are spending a significant chunk of each day absorbing others’ filtered images while they walk through their own realities, unfiltered. In a recent survey conducted by the Girl Scouts, nearly 74 percent of girls agreed that other girls tried to make themselves look ‘cooler than they are’ on social networking sites. Checking Instagram is like opening a magazine to see a fashion advertisement. Except an ad is branded as what it is: a staged image on glossy paper. Instagram is passed off as real life. Yes, people filter their photos to make them prettier. People are also often encouraged to put filters on their sadness, to brighten their reality so as not to ‘drag down’ those around them. The myth still exists that happiness is a choice, which perpetuates the notion of depression as weakness. Life must be Instagrammed -- in more ways than one. ”2

2 Fagan, Kate. “Split Image.” ESPN W, ESPN Internet Ventures, 7 May 2015, www.espn.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/12833146/instagram-account-university-pennsylvania-runner-showed-only-part-story. Accessed 27 Sept. 2017.

REMEMBER: This activity could cause feelings of discomfort for some girls in the unit, especially for those that may have had uncomfortable experiences online or experienced pressure to hide any difficulties they may have. This is designed to be an open discussion about experiences not one to pass judgment. For a deeper dive, you can listen to the Stuff Mom

Never Told You podcast at https://goo.gl/DSMkQF.

https://goo.gl/DSMkQF


3. Give each group a copy of the stuff to talk about from page 10 to. In your group, talk through the questions. Anyone can contribute their thoughts or just listen through the discussion. Don’t worry if the conversation shifts away from the exact question. You can also move to any question when you are ready to keep the conversation going.

• Your group could also choose to write their thoughts about each question on a slip of paper. Drop them into a pile. When you’ve written answers to all of the questions, mix up the slips for question one and have someone read them out. Repeat this for the rest of the questions so thoughts can be shared in an anonymous way.

• However you choose to run the activity, remember to keep comments and discussion positive and supportive. Kindly remind each other if someone forgets.

4. Give everyone drawing materials or use image editing apps to create a message or image you could share on social media to bring attention to what you talked about. You can use a photo of yourself or use words and other images. E.g.

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• Do you ever feel pressure to post “perfect” pictures? How do you feel when your pictures don’t turn out “perfectly”?

• What are some ways that girls and young women can reclaim social media to be a more realistic reflection of their lives?

• Do you often find you compare your pictures – and your life – to those of your friends? • Do you feel like you always have to be “camera ready” in case someone takes your picture? If so, how

does that affect you?• What would be the drawbacks of not posting photos of yourself at all?

Barriers and Bystanders

Navigating the online world can be difficult, especially when you see others being trolled or harassed online. In this activity, you will explore how barriers can make you become a bystander.

Skills you’ll build: You will need: Time it takes:• Self-awareness• Voice• Problem solving

• One skipping rope or tension band per group of three or four

• Optional: Cyberbullying support material from the backgrounder (page 4).

• 10– 20 minutes

What to do:

1. Talk about examples of cyberbullying, harassment, or drama between friends that you may have heard, seen or experienced. How did you feel when you witnessed this happening?

2. Break into groups of 3 – 4 or work together as one large group.

3. Give two people a skipping rope with the ends tied together. They will step into the rope and step back to pull it taut around their calves below the knee.

4. Have everyone else in the group try to step over the rope.

5. After everyone has tried to step over the line, ask: What are some of the small barriers that could prevent someone from stepping up when you see someone being harassed online? (e.g. don’t know how to report the harassment)

REMEMBER: This activity could cause feelings of discomfort for some of the girls in the unit especially for those that may have had uncomfortable experiences with cyberbullying or harassment. For those seeking more support, check out page 4 in the backgrounder for a list of resources, such as tip sheets created by Kids Help Phone https://goo.gl/j9nUAJ.

https://goo.gl/j9nUAJ


6. Have the two people move the rope up to just above their knees. Group members then try stepping over it again. After everyone has had a turn, ask: What are some larger barriers that prevent someone from stepping up? (e.g. don’t want to get involved, don’t notice it)

7. Repeat a third time with the rope sitting on the waist or hips. Some group members may not be able to get over on their own. Try and find safe ways you can support them to help them get over. After everyone has attempted to get over, ask: What are the greatest barriers that could prevent someone from stepping up when they see cyberbullying or harassment? (e.g. fear of getting involved or hurt themselves, peer pressure)


• Who can you turn to when you are experiencing harassment online?

• How can you support someone else who is experiencing harassment online?

Socially Supported - Rangers (Modified from “Triangle Tag” from Playmeo.com)

Social media can offer a platform to show and find support. However, what looks like support to one person can feel very different to another. How are your posts affecting others?

Skills you’ll build: You will need: Time it takes:• Communication• Teamwork• Self-awareness

• An open space • 10– 15 minutes

What to do:

1. As a group, talk about some of the experiences you have had where you felt supported while you were online.

2. Play a round of triangle tag.

• Make groups of four. • Three people will hold hands to create a triangle. The fourth is standing on the outside. They will be

“It.”• Choose one person from the triangle to be the target. The person who is “It” is going to try to tag the

target while the others in the triangle try to protect them. • The game ends when time is up, or the target is tagged.

A NOTE FROM MEDIASMARTS: If you are a witness, there

is always something you can do. One of the best

strategies is to comfort the person privately and help them feel supported.


3. Share your experiences:

• If you were the target, how did it feel to have two other people working to support you?

• How did it feel to be supporting someone else?• If you were “It” how did it feel to be outside the supported group?• When you are online, who is supporting you and how?

4. Play triangle tag again. This time, the three people in the triangle will be “It” and the person on the outside will be the target.

5. Share your experiences again:

• How did it feel to be the target this time?• How did it feel to be in the group? Did you consider the feelings of the target?• Have you ever felt ganged up on when online? Anyone who is comfortable can share their experiences


• What is it important to think about when making any types of comments online?• How might your actions or comments online be misinterpreted as ganging up on someone else?• What can you do to ensure your intentions are clearly communicated?• How can you be supportive of someone online in a way that doesn’t exclude others?• What can you do when you are feeling isolated online or feeling ganged up against online?

THEME 3 – Disconnect and Reconnect These activities will give you a chance to disconnect from tech and reconnect with others IRL.

Theme Activities: Relationship Builder with your tech – Rangers In this activity, you will connect with those in the tech industry and learn about building your own platforms or games

Skills you’ll build: You will need: Time it takes:• Creativity• Problem solving• Adaptability

• Optional: Devices or access to computers with Wi-Fi

• Will vary depending on the presentation, could take up to an hour or more


What to do: OPTION 1: GUEST SPEAKERInvite a guest speaker to attend your meeting to talk about coding and program/app development and ways to engage with tech in a whole new way. A few organizations that you could reach out to include:

• Ladies Learning Code (Canada–wide) - http://ladieslearningcode.com/ • Kids Code Jeunesse (Canada–wide) - http://kidscodejeunesse.org/about.html • Go CODE Girl from ONWiE (Ontario + BC) - http://www.onwie.ca/programs/go-code-girl • Pixelles (Montreal) - http://pixelles.ca/ • Youth Spark (Microsoft Stores Canada-wide) – https://www.microsoft.com/about/philanthropies/

youthspark/youthsparkhub/programs/ • Dames Making Games (Toronto-based, Canada-wide support) – Supporting

diverse game makers - https://dmg.to/ • Lighthouse Labs – https://lighthouselabs.ca• Tech Girls Canada – https://techgirls.ca

You can also reach out to a local makerspace, library, high school or university to see if they have coding and/or program/app development programs for teens.

OPTION 2: HOUR OF CODEHour of Code is an online platform with online and offline activities that teach you how to work with code and game coding. You can use your devices, laptops, or one of their offline options to run an hour of code in your meeting. Check out all the options available at: https://hourofcode.com/us Stuff to talk about:

• How could you use these skills or further build on them?• What are some other ways you can combine your tech time and your IRL

experiences to build relationships?

Connecting with Each Other (Modified from Pruie from Playmeo.com)

When your friends do things without you – especially with filter-fantastic lives of friends and strangers – it can make you feel isolated or lonely. Stepping away from your devices and tech can also cause feelings of stress known as disconnection anxiety or fear of missing out (FOMO). In this activity, you will be reminded that with Guiding, you always have others to connect with IRL.

Skills you’ll build: You will need: Time it takes:• Self-awareness• Empathy• Problem solving

• An open space • 10 – 20 minutes


What to do:

1. Altogether, share some of the ways you connect with your friends online or in real life (IRL). Consider what you do for fun with others:

• Does it involve tech?• How does it make you feel? • How does it build connection?• Can that same connection be built when using tech?

2. Have everyone close their eyes and reach their hands in front of them. Choose one person to start as a “pruie.” A pruie is someone that cannot speak during the game but acts to connect everyone together.

3. Try to find the pruie by walking around the room slowly with your eyes closed. When you touch another person, ask “pruie?” If they answer “pruie” back, keep walking slowly around the room.

4. If the person you find is the pruie, they will not answer back. Link arms with them to become part of the pruie. The game ends when everyone has become part of the pruie.


• What are some strategies you use when you’re feeling disconnected from family and friends IRL?• How is talking with your friends online different from talking IRL? • How does the method of communication you use affect your relationships?• What are some other ways you can disconnect from tech and reconnect with family and friends IRL?

Dealing with Disconnection – Rangers

Stepping away from your devices and tech can sometimes cause feelings of stress known as disconnection anxiety. A meditation walk is one strategy for helping to manage these feelings.

Skills you’ll build: You will need: Time it takes:• Self-awareness• Resiliency• Self-regulation

• A quiet space, ideally outside • 15 – 30 minutes

What to do:

1. As a group, think back to the starter activity:

• When are you most connected with your tech?• Are you using tech before you go to sleep? • How do you feel when you do not have access to a device or you can’t be online?


2. Take a moment to consider how you felt thinking about these questions. Did you feel stressed or anxious? Remember we don’t all experience stress and anxiety in the same way or to the same degree.

3. Choose one of the meditation walk options below for helping to manage feelings caused from disconnecting from tech. Try it out on your own or with others.

• OPTION 1 – Japanese Shinrin Yoku (translates to “Forest Bathing”). Go outside to a park, garden or treed area. Walk very slowly through that space, feeling the ground under your feet. Once you feel grounded slowly look around that space and watch for hints of movement in nature. Are there branches quivering in a breeze? What else is in motion in the environment? Taking a moment to observe nature is one way to bring you to the present moment and help clear your mind.

• OPTION 2 – Theravada Walking Meditation: This is a good option when being outdoors isn’t possible. Have one person read the description slowly:: º Choose a straight path, the longer the better. Bare or socked feet work best. There is no “right”

experience. Just see how the experience feels to you. Stand upright, with eyes cast down about a meter and a half in front (to prevent distraction), not looking at anything in particular. Some people find it useful to keep the eyelids half closed. As you slowly walk, place all your attention at the soles of the feet, on the sensations and feelings as they arise and pass away. Feel the legs and feet tense as you lift the leg. Feel the movement of the leg as it swings through the air. Note the sensations felt. As the foot comes down again into contact with the path, a new feeling arises. Place your awareness on that sensation, as it is felt through the sole of the foot. At each new step, certain new feelings are experienced and old feelings cease – feeling arising, feeling passing away, feeling arising, feeling passing away. Be constantly mindful of all sensations that arise in the sole of the feet. Continue to slowly walk back and forth along the same short path. When you come to the end of your path, come to a full stop, turn around, stop again, and then start again. In the beginning, middle and end of the path, ask “Where is my mind? Is it on the soles of the feet?” Whenever your mind wanders from this focus, you bring it back to your foot, and the sensations for the contact with the ground. 3


• Compare how you felt before the mindfulness activity with how you feel after. How does your body feel different? How have your thoughts changed?

• What can you do at home or during the day to help you remember to take a break and disconnect?• Experts suggest that we end tech use at least 30-60 minutes before bed. What can you do to help

yourself disconnect and quiet your mind at the end of your day?

3 Dienstmann, Giovanni . “Ultimate Guide to Walking Meditation | LiveAndDare.” Live and Dare, 20 Sept. 2017, liveanddare.com/walking-meditation/. Accessed 29 Sept. 2017.


CONCLUDE the Challenge with the following Closing Activity.

Closing Activity – Empower-memes – Rangers Through this challenge, you have developed skills to help you to decode the digital world and think about how you are interacting with digital media. Create a meme to help empower you when you are online.

Skills you’ll build: You will need: Time it takes:• Self-awareness• Voice• Imagination

• Option 1: Paper and drawing materials

• Option 2: Cameras and editing apps• Optional: Internet access

• 10-20 minutes

What to do:

1. Share some of your favourite memes and talk about what makes them memorable. E.g.

2. Think about something meaningful that you want to take away from the DeCode Challenge. Create a one- or two-line statement about it.

3. Draw, take, or find a picture to go with your statement.

4. Add your statement around that picture to “meme” it.

5. Share your images with your unit or online.


• Why do you think people like memes so much and they are so memorable?

• How will you use your meme to remind yourself about what you did in DeCode?

A meme is generally a funny or interesting video or photo with

words overlayed that is shared widely

online, especially through social media.


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Resources: Clock Template - Individual


Resources: Clock Template - Group

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Resources: Advertisements


Resources Advertisements


Resources: Advertisements


Resources: Reframing the Image

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2224453/Afraid-shadow-Photograph-capturing-deadly-shark-poised-pounce-harmless-gannet-trick-light.html

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Source: https://layersmagazine.com/5-tips-for-adding-impact-using-the-right-crop.html

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