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Skeptic or Cynic?

Run the Skeptic or Cynic MicroSim Fullscreen

You can include this MicroSim on your website using the following iframe:

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<iframe src="https://dmccreary.github.io/digital-citizenship/sims/skeptic-or-cynic/main.html" height="600px" scrolling="no"></iframe>

Description

This MicroSim teaches students the difference between a skeptic and a cynic. A skeptic pauses to ask good questions — "Who said this? How do they know? Where is the proof?" A cynic has given up on the truth and assumes everyone is lying.

The simulation has two modes:

  • Explore mode shows two side-by-side columns. The left column holds five skeptical phrases. The right column holds five cynical phrases. A More... button pulls a fresh set of samples from a bank of twenty phrases of each type.
  • Quiz mode shows one phrase at a time and asks the student to choose Skeptic Phrase or Cynic Phrase. A progress bar tracks correct answers. When a student gets ten correct, a celebration animation plays.

Learning Objective

Students will be able to distinguish between skeptical phrases (curious, question-asking, evidence-seeking) and cynical phrases (dismissive, hopeless, blame-everything) when they see them online.

Lesson Plan

Before

Ask the class: "What is the difference between someone who checks if a story is true and someone who just says everything online is fake?" Collect a few student answers on the board. Tell students they will meet two characters today: the Skeptic and the Cynic.

During

  1. Project the MicroSim on a shared screen, or let students work in pairs on tablets or Chromebooks.
  2. Start in Explore mode. Read one phrase from each column out loud. Ask students what makes the skeptic phrases sound curious and the cynic phrases sound hopeless.
  3. Click More... to pull a new set and repeat. Aim for two or three rounds so students see many examples of each kind of phrase.
  4. Switch to Quiz mode. Let students (or the class together) work toward ten correct answers. Pause after wrong answers to talk about why the correct label fits.
  5. When the celebration plays, ask students to name two skeptic habits they could use this week.

After

Have students write one skeptic phrase they want to practice using the next time they see a surprising claim online. Post the best ones on the classroom wall.

  • This MicroSim pairs with chapter content on media literacy and the "pause, think, act" habit.
  • See phrases.json in the MicroSim folder to edit or add phrases. The file has two arrays named skeptic and cynic, each with twenty short phrases appropriate for Grade 5 readers.
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