"The Multiverse of Three Little Pigs" is one of LAPSEE's signature children's media literacy workshops. It helps young learners develop critical thinking skills by emphasizing the importance of reading between the lines when they read a news article and fact-checking information. In September, we attended this workshop as part of our internship to prepare for our role as teaching assistants for the same workshop at the Science Education Center later in October. This workshop invited children and their parents to engage in an interactive discussion derived from the well-known classic fairy tale The Three Little Pigs and the fractured fairy tale The True Story of Three Little Pigs.

At the beginning of the lesson, Teacher Uni asked us to share the version of The Three Little Pigs that we were familiar with. Then, she introduced a different version of the story, The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, which is narrated from the Big Bad Wolf’s perspective, portraying him as misunderstood. After reading the story, Teacher Uni asked us to decide who we thought was right—the three little pigs or the wolf.

We were divided into groups of four and tasked with writing arguments to support our chosen side. We learned that our arguments needed to base on facts or details in the stories. Following the discussion, we participated in a lively debate to determine whether the wolf was guilty, with teachers and parents serving as judges. 

Afterward, Teacher Uni showed us two newspapers with opposing perspectives on the same event and asked us to identify and circle their differences. This activity helped us realize that different newspapers have different stances. It’s important to notice the author's purpose and the audience they aim to reach. The workshop taught us that when the same story is told from different viewpoints, it’s essential to analyze the details carefully to uncover the truth.