A person in time, online!
Matt Neimitz
TIMING
2-3 hours
OVERVIEW
Have you ever wondered how a historical figure would portray themselves on social
media? Which platform would they use? What images would they share? You’ll watch a
short video about a significant historical event and research a person who was a
central figure in the event. You’ll create a social media post documenting the event
from the point of view of the historical figure, and you’ll write a short reflection.
WHAT STUDENTS WILL LEARN AND CREATE
● Contextualize a historical figure and an event in which they participated
● Reflect on how the person would communicate about the event on social media
● Design a social media post using Adobe Spark Post to document the event in
context
MATERIALS AND RESOURCES
● Adobe Spark
● Student Sample
INSTRUCTIONS
LEARN AND EXPLORE
STEP 1
● Watch the Khan Academy video The Declaration of Independence (for 8th Grade).
● Alternatively, watch a different video in Khan Academy explaining a historical event,
and select a figure who played a central role.
STEP 2
● Conduct some basic research on the historical figure, paying particular attention to:
○ Lifetime: When did the person live? What kind of education did the person
have? What was their career? What did the person do to become noteworthy?
Did the person receive recognition while still alive? If so, did this impact the
person’s behavior? How is this person perceived today? Is it different from how
the person was perceived while alive?
○ Political and social influences: What groups and institutions did this person
participate in? For example, schools, churches, families, government agencies,
and the courts? What does this tell us about the person?
○ Geography and culture: Where was the person from? How was the person
affected by where he or she came from geographically, culturally, ethnically,
socially, and economically?
○ Historical events: What events occurred during the person’s lifetime that may
have impacted them? Include local, national, and world events that were of
significance.
● Jot down facts that stand out as you think about how the person would have
represented themselves on social media, and be sure to write down the source of the
information.
STEP 3
● Gather images that represent the historical figure and the event.
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CREATE
STEP 1
● Review the research you did and the images you collected. Design a social media post.
You might include the following items in your post:
○ Profile picture and name.
○ Location where the person is posting from.
○ An image or collage of images in the post.
○ Text with the images or in the description of the post.
○ Social media hashtags.
STEP 2
● Use Spark Post to create a social media post.
● Take a look at this student sample if you want some inspiration.
STEP 3
● Download your post as an image.
● Use Spark Page to insert your post image and write a short reflection, including the
rationale for your design and content decisions regarding the post. You should also
include a list of citations for your research sources.
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FEEDBACK
Communication: Your language choices are imaginative, memorable, clear, compelling, virtually error-
language free, and enhance the effectiveness of your work or presentation.
Creativity: innovative You extend a unique idea, and create new knowledge or knowledge
thinking
Critical thinking: Your information is taken from source(s). You use evidence nicely to support your ideas!
evidence
Visual design You use contrast, balance, alignment, proximity, color to communicate your message
and direct your audience’s attention
SHARE
Publish your page and share it with your teacher or parent/guardian.
OPTIONAL TUTORIAL FOR YOUR ADOBE CREATIVE TOOL
1 Open Spark, log in with your account, and
from the Home screen, click the blue +
“Create a project” button. Then select the
type of social media post you want to create.
2 Start by adding text to display the profile
name of the historical figure and other text
components. Click the plus button and
select “Text.” Click “Start from scratch” and
type your text or select “Start from
template” and edit the text that’s
automatically added. Make any style
adjustments you’d like to make. Then repeat
the steps to add all the text elements to your
social media post.
3 Add an image or multiple images to your
post. Click the “Add” button and select
“Photo.” Click upload photo and choose an
image you found in your research. Or click
“Find free photo” and search for relevant
images. Select “Move freely” and position
the image where you want it. Repeat for any
other images in the post.Position the
components of the post to make it look as
realistic as possible.
4 Once you’ve completed the post and
confirmed you have all the components
needed, select “Download” to save the
image to your computer.
When you have finished answering the five
reflection questions and formatting your
page, you can click “Share” then “Publish and
Share link” to share with your teacher,
parent, friends, or family.
If you want to work with a peer, you can also
add them as a collaborator by clicking
“Share” and “Invite”.
6 You are done!
