Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief Activity - Mortal & Olympian News Project
Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief Activity - Mortal & Olympian News Project: This resource will help students explore point of view and media bias in Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. In this partner activity, students will create two contrasting newscasts based on events from the novel—one from the perspective of the mortal world and one from the perspective of the Olympians. Inspired by the events in Chapter 14, where the mortal media distorts Percy’s actions, this project challenges students to think critically about how perspective shapes narrative. Students will use graphic organizers to brainstorm, write scripts, and present their newscasts either live or as a recorded video. This assignment strengthens skills in textual analysis, collaboration, and creative communication.
This is included in our unit plan for the novel:
>>> The Lightning Thief Unit Plan
Included in The Percy Jackson Mortal & Olympian News Assignment:
➡️ Newscast Brainstorming Page: Support students as they gather text evidence, identify media bias, and explore contrasting perspectives on major quest events from both the mortal and Olympian point of view.
➡️ Newscast Script Writing Page: Students will draft their final newscasts with clear speaker labels and dialogue planning. These can be performed live or recorded as part of a class presentation.
How The Percy Jackson Mortal & Olympian News Assignment works:
- Students will begin by describing three key events from the novel: the Minotaur attack, the bus encounter with Mrs. Dodds and the Furies, and the Chimera battle at the Gateway Arch. Using text evidence, they will report each event from both the mortal and godly perspectives—focusing on who, what, where, when, why, and how, while capturing the misunderstanding and bias of the mortal world.
- Next, students will use their planning to write two newscasts about one of the events: one from the mortals’ perspective and one from that of the gods’. They’ll use a structured script template to plan speaker roles, content, and tone.
- To wrap up, students will perform or record their contrasting newscasts. This performance component reinforces the importance of audience awareness, collaboration, and clarity in communication.
This activity is best used after students have completed Chapter 13 of the novel, once they are familiar with how the mortal media misrepresents Percy’s quest and the contrast between mortal and divine perspectives.
If you like this, you'll love this resource:
>>> Greek Gods and Goddesses Unit
© Presto Plans
➡️ Want 10 free ELA resources sent to your inbox? Click here!
Licensed graphics by Lydie Teresa Vion