Copyright for kids

Read the article below.  Then comment on it and tell me in your own words - what is copyright?  Also tell us what ONE of the scenarios could do differently to follow copyright rules.

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Copyright is defined as the legal right to be the only one to reproduce, publish, and sell a book, musical recording, etc., for a certain period of time.

As a student you should care about copyright because everyday when you use information that you find on the internet, such as pictures or music, you could be breaking copyright law.  If you are using it in school, it qualifies as "fair use" or "educational purposes", but if you are using it for yourself, such as to make a post to start a snow shoveling business in your neighborhood, you are not covered by this exception.

Basically - using it in school is ok! (fair use)

Using it outside of school is not ok! (not fair use)

The following works are covered by copyright:

• literary works (which includes computer software); - aka books
• musical works, including any accompanying words; - aka songs and lyrics
• dramatic works, including any accompanying music ; - aka plays and musicals
• pantomimes and choreographic works; - aka dances
• pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works; - aka pictures
• motion pictures and other audiovisual works; - aka movies and TV shows
• sound recordings; and - aka voice recordings
• architectural works. - aka building structures

Copyright infringement or plagiarism is when you take credit for something that is created by someone else, especially when you do not give credit to them.  While you generally are fine while in school by using information, you will be required in most instances to tell where you found the information.  This is called citing and link to the information is called a citation.  

If you want to use something on the internet, you can do a few things:

1. Look for pictures or videos that are “Labeled for reuse”
2. Use a citation to show where you found your information (website address, author name, etc.)
3. Contact the person who created the picture or video and ask them for permission to use it

All of these will protect you.  Consider these scenarios:

• Kylee is a student in 7th grade creating a video about her favorite book.  She uses pictures that she found from Google images and puts them in her video.  She publishes this video for everyone to watch on Facebook.
• John is a student in 5th grade making a presentation for his language arts teacher.  He uses pictures from Google images and he shares the presentation with his teacher and his partner, Mike.  His teacher posts it on her website and many people from outside his school can see it.
• Tyler is a student in 5th grade who wants to get a boy scouts badge.  He makes posters to advertise his service project and he uses pictures he found from Google images.  He hangs these pictures around his neighborhood so that people can contact him.

What did these people do wrong?  What could they do differently?