The Hunger Games: Training Scores & Public Perception Reputation

The Hunger Games: Training Scores & Public PerceptionReputation & Influence Investigation | Grades 6–10

Explore reputation, media influence, quantified metrics, and manufactured public perception through The Hunger Games! In this no-prep lesson, students investigate how one publicly announced training score can shape the way an entire nation views a tribute—and how that perception can translate into sponsorship, opportunity, and power.

Students examine how the Gamemakers’ scoring system reduces complex individuals to a single public number and analyze the difference between what a score measures, what audiences assume, and what may actually be true. They also investigate Katniss’s unexpectedly high score and consider how a single strategic moment changes perceptions of her without changing her underlying abilities.

What’s Included
- Teacher Directions & Overview
- Mini Research Questions
- 5-Step Group Activity
- 3 Student Investigation Pages
- Color & Black-and-White Versions
- Online Research Resources

Students Will Explore
- How training scores create public reputations
- Perceived ability vs. actual ability
- Katniss’s score and its impact on public perception
- How scores influence audiences, sponsors, and opportunities
- What numerical scores reveal—and what they fail to capture
- The relationship between performance, reputation, and future outcomes
- Strengths and limitations of public scoring systems
- How the same metric can mean different things to different audiences
- Real-world connections to grades, ratings, rankings, reviews, and social media metrics
- How perception can begin creating real consequences

Why Teachers Love This
- Designed for 1–2 class periods
- No complicated preparation
- Combines literary analysis with media literacy
- Moves beyond plot recall into critical thinking
- Provides structured research, planning, and deeper analysis
- Encourages evidence-based reasoning
- Creates meaningful real-world connections
- Works individually, with partners, or in groups
- Includes color and printer-friendly versions

Perfect For
- The Hunger Games novel studies
- Propaganda & media literacy
- Reputation and public perception
- Literary analysis
- Critical thinking
- Ethics of rankings and scoring
- Small-group investigations
- ELA & Social Studies connections
- Enrichment or sub plans

Part of The Hunger Games: Propaganda, Media & Manufactured Reality Series
This is an independently created educational resource and is not affiliated with, authorized by, endorsed by, or sponsored by Suzanne Collins, her publishers, or related rights holders. A copy of the novel is not included.